Carney says he’ll only take ‘best deal for Canada’ in U.S. trade talks

Prime Minister Mark Carney says negotiations with the United States on trade and security will aim to get the “best deal for Canada,” adding that his phone is “ringing off the hook” with calls from other nations eager to trade with Canada.

Carney is currently attending a summit in Huntsville, Ontario and joined by Canada’s premiers and territorial leaders to discuss both domestic and international trade as U.S. tariffs imposed by President Donald Trump continue to evolve.

After a meeting concluded on Tuesday, Carney addressed the media and answered questions on the path ahead as the trade negotiations continue, and what he considers a good deal for Canada.

“A good deal is something that preserves, reinforces and stabilizes those relationships as much as possible. A good deal is also one that doesn’t tie our hands in terms of other things that we can do so that we can pursue that positive agenda that we focus so much of our time on,” said Carney.

“Our phone is ringing off the hook from other countries who want to do more with Canada. I’ve had over 80 bilaterals with world leaders since I became prime minister. A number of premiers have been on major trade missions. We have other things to do and so we’re going to focus more and more of our time on those positive aspects going forward.“

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Before Tuesday’s meeting kicked off, Carney, joined by the provincial and territorial leaders spoke about how the summit will work to build a stronger Canadian economy.

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“What we collectively, alternatively, can most control is building a stronger economy, moving from alliance to resilience and division to unity,” Carney told the media ahead of discussions with premiers.

“That will require support for affected industries: lumber, steel, aluminum, automobiles, particularly.”

One of the biggest challenges in the current trade war with the U.S., which Carney has been focused on throughout his leadership, has been to find alternative trading partners in order to minimize or avoid impacts from Trump’s tariff policies.

The government’s goal in diversifying trade is to bolster Canada’s economy and make it easier for provinces and territories to do business domestically.

This is being done both at the federal level as well as through deals with individual provinces and territories.

“It’s critical that we get out of the way of Canadians being able to work where they want and to buy what they want,” Carney said.

“Bottom line is: Canadians can be our own best customer and we’re making sure that’s the case and we can give ourselves far more than anyone else can take away and control our destiny together and build. I look forward to discussion and bring it forward.”

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Before Tuesday’s meeting, some premiers had already been working on agreements of their own to help build a network of interprovincial trade in addition to work being done by the federal government to bring down barriers to free trade within Canada’s borders.

“I would also like to commend the series of free trade agreements that have been signed between the provinces. I know there’s been a flurry of additional activity,” Carney said.

“This network, this web of free trade agreements is significant for our country, is what Canadians want, what our citizens want.”

Carney was seated next to Ontario Premier Doug Ford, who also addressed the media as the discussions kicked off.

“We need to make sure we match tariff by tariff, dollar for dollar, and hit him (Trump) back as hard as we possibly can,” Ford said.

“There’s one thing President Trump understands is strength. He doesn’t understand or appreciate weakness. He will roll over us like a cement roller if you show an ounce of weakness with the president, in my opinion. And as well, at the same time, we need the federal government to be ready.“