News, Insights, and Analysis focusing on Canadian Politics
Trump’s latest comments echo his repeated references to making Canada the “51st state” of America since returning to office, reports Nadine Yousif at BBC News.
Trade talks fell apart when it became clear the Americans demanded concessions that were never on the table.
“We were not prepared to compromise Canada’s sovereignty or undermine our key industries,” Prime Minster Carney said.
“We were not prepared to compromise on the protection of the French language and our culture.
Holding a wartime election in Ukraine while active fighting with Russia continues would “destroy” the country by splitting Ukrainians, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said.
His comments, released to reporters on Sunday, were Zelenskyy’s first on the subject since ousted former Defence Minister Mykhailo Fedorov called for a wartime poll in a bombshell address last week, report Max Hunder and Dan Peleschuk at Reuters.
Trump’s progressive abandonment of the Western alliance means that the world’s liberal democracies are coming to the realization that they will have to defend themselves.
If Putin strikes Ukraine with a nuclear weapon, or Kim Jong-Un detonates a warhead on Daeyeonpyeongdo Island, or Xi Jinping fires a hypersonic missile, detected by NORAD, at a Canadian city, will Donald Trump retaliate or abandon America’s allies? This is the world Trump and his primarily isolationist political base are brazenly provoking into realization. It is a collective action problem because nuclear proliferation will produce a net loss of collective security for even those countries with the best-equipped nuclear arsenals. Trump has forgotten that the essential crisis of the post-1945 period is to spread liberal democracy, which is an antidote to poverty and war, faster than nuclear proliferation.
Read the full article at Modern Diplomacy.
In a muscular, 22-minute speech that let Canadians — and Americans — know exactly where he stands, Mr. Carney said that Canada was under attack by President Trump’s punishing tariffs.
“You’re at war when you’re attacked, and we got attacked,” Mr. Carney said.
Since President Trump has returned to office, the United States and Canada have repeatedly come close to an all-out trade war — only for Mr. Trump to dial back some of his harshest attacks against one of America’s closest allies.
But that period of relative calm came to an end on Saturday, as new 50% tariffs from Washington took effect, drawing a pointed threat from Canada to respond in kind. The resulting clash left the two North American neighbours barrelling toward a dangerous tit-for-tat escalation, one that may yet inflict real harm on the U.S. economy.
Paul Musgrave: The funny thing is that Prime Minister Mark Carney of Canada has much the same incentives, despite the obvious differences between Canada and Iran.
Carney is elected, but has years left to run on his mandate, so there’s little time pressure on him compared to Trump’s own foolish self-imposed deadlines. And although the U.S. aggression against Iran has been bloody and that against Canada “merely” economic (although with threats of much worse!), Carney has seen, just as Tehran has, that Trump is mercurial and difficult to sustain an agreement with.
In an interview with CBC News on Saturday, Nova Scotia Premier Tim Houston said he stands with with Prime Minister Mark Carney in pursuing fair trade for Canada. He said the U.S. is no longer a reliable partner and that Canadians should bridge their divisions to work together.
Houston said the new reality should drive Nova Scotia and Canada toward self-reliance to stay strong, saying the province must develop its own energy and natural resources while seeking new markets.
“We were not prepared to compromise Canada’s sovereignty or undermine our key industries.
“We were not prepared to compromise on the protection of the French language and our culture.
“To our American colleagues, let’s be clear: for my government and for Canada, these issues were never on the table, even though the United States tried until the very last minute.
Amid the aftermath of last-minute trade talks breaking down, Unifor national president Lana Payne says the Trump administration is purposely targeting Canada’s manufacturing sector.
In a Saturday afternoon statement, NWT Premier RJ Simpson said Prime Minister Mark Carney was “right to hold the line for a fair agreement rather than accept a deal at any cost,” adding the territory “stands with the Prime Minister and with Team Canada” on a coordinated response that defends Canadian interests, Cabin Radio reports.
“We are advancing projects like the Mackenzie Valley Highway, the Arctic Economic and Security Corridor and the Taltson Hydro Expansion, while advancing critical mineral development and other resources Canada and our allies need,” the premier wrote.
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