Both Prime Minister Mark Carney and U.S. President Donald Trump spoke of “very” constructive talks on Friday, even though planned U.S. tariffs on Canadian vehicles are still expected to go ahead on April 2, after which Canada is expected to retaliate with counter-tariffs.
Despite no definitive movement on the promised levies after a phone call between the two leaders, Carney told reporters in Montreal on the campaign trail that they still made “progress,” and that the president also “respected Canada’s sovereignty today in public and private comments.”
When asked whether the president indicated that Canada might be exempt from the April 2 tariffs, Carney said, “It’s still the case that we will have tariffs.”
Carney said Trump’s goal was to “transform the American economy, and because of that he will transform the world economy, including the Canadian economy,” by targeting strategic sectors including steel and aluminum.
“We can make progress in this situation, but this is different from the world of 1990 and the world of NAFTA and even the USMCA,” said Carney in French. “The key here … momentum has changed; we need to react and we can react.”
Earlier Friday in the White House, U.S. President Donald Trump said he had a “very, very good” talk with Carney and that he expects that “things are going to work out very well” between Canada and the U.S.
“Mark called me today at 10 o’clock. We put out a statement. We had a very, very good talk. He’s going through an election now and we’ll see what happens,” Trump said.
However, he said he will “absolutely” follow through on a pledge to impose large-scale tariffs in response to any retaliatory tariffs from Canada.
The two men spoke Friday morning by phone, the first time the two leaders have spoken since Carney became prime minister on March 14.
The call came after Trump said earlier this week that the U.S. would impose a 25 per cent tariff on vehicles made outside of the U.S., starting on April 2.
Carney said he informed Trump in the call that Canada will implement retaliatory tariffs in response to his latest move.
Trump said in a Truth Social post that the two men found many points of agreement, adding that they will meet “immediately after Canada’s upcoming Election” – this despite the fact the outcome of the election will not be decided until April 28.
“Thank you for your attention to this matter!” said Trump to Carney in the post.
Meanwhile, talks between International Trade Minister Dominic LeBlanc and U.S. Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick “will intensify” in the interim in order “to address immediate concerns,” Carney said.
He said he told Trump he would be “working hard for the next month to earn the right to represent Canada.”
Carney stepped away from his campaign Thursday to deal with Trump’s latest threats, meeting with his cabinet in Ottawa.
He is also expected to have a call with Canada’s premiers Friday to discuss the trade war.
While Trump characterized the call as productive, he has proven fickle and unpredictable in his dealings with Canada so far, announcing tariffs one day, only to announce delays or exemptions several days later.
Trump was less than complimentary toward Carney’s predecessor, former prime minister Justin Trudeau. The U.S. president frequently referred to him as “governor Justin Trudeau” and accused him of using trade discussions with the U.S. to try to stay in power.
Poilievre, Singh react to call
Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre, on the campaign trail in Nanaimo, B.C. on Friday, was asked to comment on the phone call between Carney and Trump. He accused the Liberal Party of making Canada “too reliant on the Americans” and promised to strengthen interprovincial trade and trade with other nations if he became prime minister.
Poilievre said it was “clear that the president would like to keep the Liberals in power. They’ve been very good for his agenda, to take our money and our jobs.” He then accused the Liberals of helping Trump’s cause by blocking pipelines, LNG plants, and raising taxes on industries.“Mark Carney and Donald Trump have one thing in common -- they both favour taxing Canadian industry,” Poilievre said. “Trump with tariffs and Carney with carbon taxes.”
Poilievre ended his media availability with a message for Trump, which was that “true free trade, without tariffs, will allow both of our economies to separately grow stronger so that we can fund strong militaries and more secure borders, and make our continent safe against the real risks from overseas.”
Speaking with CP24 in an interview Friday, NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh said the conversation is somewhat encouraging. However he said that the existing tariffs, and the threat of further ones, remain a concern.
“I think Canadians hearing that will feel some relief that there wasn’t a mention of the 51st state. There seemed to be some respect for Canada,” Singh said. “But I’m most concerned about the tariffs and the impact on tariffs, so my number one priority is; we have to see those tariffs removed, and we have to see them off of auto, off of steel and aluminum. That’s really my focus.”
But Singh added that Trump is “very unpredictable.”
“So really, the question of this election is, who’s going to fight for you and your family in all this uncertainty?”
