Canada’s Prime Minister had a key objective at his high -risk meeting with President Trump on Tuesday. He needed to say, in unequivocal terms, that Canada will not become the 51st state of the United States, while avoiding a public struggle.
And he succeeded.
“As you know of real estate, there are some places that are not on sale,” said Carney solemnly. “It is not on sale. It generated being on sale, always,” he added.
“Never say ever,” Trump replied. But the power of the moment had deactivated, and Trump was clearly not interested in fighting Mr. Carney, whom he praised for his impressive electoral victory only a few days ago.
The relationship between neighbors, allies and the main business partners has been in a historical minimum since the re -election of Mr. Trump because or their decision to impose tariffs on Canadian goods and their constant reflection that are the horses to make Canada be part of the United States.
Less than an hour before Mr. Carney Arrade in the White House, Trump downloaded in Canada in a beautiful position in Truth Social, repeating his frequent criticism that the country was too adhesive in the United States.
“We do not need anything they have, apart from their friendship, that we hope to maintain,” Trump wrote. “They, on the other hand, need everything of us!”
But Trump gave a much more conciliatory tone once the two leaders sat in the oval office. Trump congratulated Mr. Carney for his choice, praising his campaign as “one of the greatest returns in the history of politics.” (He did not mention that Mr. Carney had won on an anti-trump platform).
“We have some difficult points to review, and that will be fine,” Trump said.
Do not get Zensky-Ed
As the public part came to an end, Trump contrasts this meeting with the disastrous that Mr. Carney struggled not to replicate: the oval office meeting in February between Trump and President Volodyymyr Zensky or Ukraine.
“We had another little breath with someone else,” Trump said. “That was very different. This is, this is a very friendly conversation.”
In the course of a half -hour meeting in front of the cameras, Mr. Carney spoke only three times after delivering his opening comments. Mr. Trump dominated the air time, mainly with comments that deviated from the subject. For example, he criticized former President Barack Obama about delays in the construction of his presidential library, blaming it without foundation for Mr. Obama’s preference for diversity in hiring. Hi, he also attacked Governor Gavin Newsom in California on the state’s high speed rail project, describing it as “the worst invaded cost I have seen.”
He also made fun of a “very, very big announcement,” he thought he refused to provide details beyond saying that he would do so in the next few days. Mr. Carney took the opportunity to use humor to improve the mood, something he does or: “Mr. President, I am on the edge of my seat,” he said with a smile.
Trump also announced that the United States would stop bombing the Hutí militia in Yemen because the group said he no longer wanted to fight. (Oman’s Foreign Minister later published on social networks that the country had mediated a high fire between the Hutis and the United States).
Adulation and preparation
The ability of Mr. Carney to survive his first public interaction, Trump, relatively unscathed Trump, was reduced to intense preparation, something for Mr. Carney is known since his central banking days, and the learning lessons of the previous meetings of Mr. Trump with foreign leaders.
He started flattering Mr. Trump.
“You are a transformation president, focused on the economy, with a relentless approach to the US worker, security, borders, ending the scourge of fentanyl and other opioids, and ensuring the world,” said Carney.
He was there to see the care to choose the moment to deliver his reprimand from the 51st state of Trump, and spoke firmly but not aggressively when he did.
Carney was also saved from the interventions of high Trump officials.
Vice President JD Vance and the other senior US officials remained largely silent, the meeting, unlike the contentious encounter with Mr. Zensky, a duration that Mr. Vance rebuked the Ukrainian leader.
And the Canadian prime minister clearly benefited from Mr. Trump’s thought rather than his predecessor, Justin Trudeau. Trump and Trudeau had a public fall in 2018, and the relationship never recovered. Trump’s durable spirit to Trudeau was exhibited again on Tuesday, with Trump referring to him as “Governor Trudeau”.
Without advances
After their public comments in the Oval office, Trump and Carney went to a private work lunch, flanked by some of their main advisors and ministers. That is very likely that the substantive conversation about the future of the relationship between the two countries occurs, although there were no expectations that an advance in Tuesday’s meeting was reached.
Canada and the United States share, together with Mexico, a free trade agreement that now lies in tingling; Mr. Trump has said that trade with Canada that surpassed Canada and harms the United States.
Mr. Carney said that discussions between the two would take time and extend far beyond commercial problems to cover other areas, such as security and defense.
Despite the most harmonious tone, and Mr. Carney’s intention to open substantive conversations during lunch, Trump made it clear that he was not changing his mind about tariffs with Canada.
The United States has applied a 25 percent tariff on Canadian goods that are not covered by the trilateral free trade agreement between the two countries and Mexico, as well as steel and aluminum exports, and a 10 percent tariff on energy and potassa exports. While many important goods, such as the car, have been exempt, tariffs still have a significant effect on the Canadian economy.
Canada has retaliation imposing its own tariffs on US goods, since the only country leads China to do so.
Trump told reporters that he did not believe that Tuesday’s conversations led to changes in policies.
