Prime Minister Mark Carney said Canada can stand up for its own sovereignty in response to annexation talk from the U.S. administration as he wrapped up his first international trip.
Carney met with King Charles and U.K. Prime Minister Keir Starmer in London on Monday evening after meeting with French President Emmanuel Macron in Paris earlier in the day.
Speaking to reporters after his meeting with Starmer, Carney was asked if he was concerned that allies should be more forceful in defending Canada as U.S. President Donald Trump continues to insist the country become the 51st state.
“I don’t think one needs to respond to every comment about another country,” Carney said in response.
“It’s Canada strong, we can stand up for ourselves. We’ve called out those comments. They’re disrespectful, they’re not helpful and they need to stop.”
Prime Minister Mark Carney, while speaking from Canada House in London, says U.S. President Donald Trump’s ‘disrespectful’ comments calling Canada the 51st state ‘will have to stop before we sit down and have a conversation about our broader partnership with the United States.’
Carney said the priorities for his trip were to strengthen economic and security ties with the two countries.
King Charles, Canada’s monarch, hasn’t explicitly voiced support for Canada’s sovereignty in the wake of Trump’s rhetoric.
But the King has recently made a number of symbolic gestures to show solidarity with Canada. Charles wore his Canadian medals during a high-profile military visit, planted a red maple tree on the grounds of Buckingham Palace and gave his personal Canadian liaison and senior protocol officer in Parliament a sword.
Prime Minister Mark Carney sits down with King Charles in London during his first foreign trip as Canada’s prime minister.
Carney had a private audience with King Charles at Buckingham Palace before meeting with Starmer.
The prime minister was presented to the King inside the London palace, and explained to Canada’s monarch that he did not have his Order of Canada pin because it fell off and broke on the tarmac upon his arrival.
Charles jokingly offered Carney his pin, but the prime minister refused, saying he is “not of that rank.”
This is Carney’s first official foreign trip since he was sworn in on March 14.
The trip to London is a bit of a homecoming, as Carney became the first non-British governor in the Bank of England’s 319-year history when he took over the top job on July 1, 2013. He served until March 15, 2020.
After leaving the palace, Carney went to 10 Downing Street where he met with Starmer. The leaders sat for photos before going into their meeting. They made brief statements but did not take any questions.
Carney called the long-standing diplomatic relationship between Canada and the U.K. “remarkable,” saying it is based on shared values.
“We’re at a point in history where the world is being reordered,” Carney said, adding that the two countries’ “security co-operation, which is seamless, is essential,” as the pair work through the G7 to help “reshape the world.”
Starmer thanked Carney for voicing Canada’s ongoing support for Ukraine. “It doesn’t surprise me that our two countries see this through a similar lense, with the same objectives,” the British PM said.
A readout of the meeting, provided by Starmer’s office, said the U.K. prime minister noted that the two countries “are the closest of sovereign allies and friends.”
Meeting with Macron
Carney began the day in Paris with a visit to the rebuilt Notre-Dame Cathedral before sitting down for a private lunch with Macron at the Palais de l’Élysée.
“It is more important than ever for Canada to strengthen its ties with its reliable allies, such as France,” Carney said in French before lunch with Macron.
Describing Canada as the “most European of non-European countries,” Carney told Macron he is “determined, like you, to maintain the most positive possible relations with the United States.
“We must strengthen our diplomatic ties to address a world that is increasingly unstable and dangerous,” he said. “Canada is a reliable, trustworthy and strong partner of France, which shares our values and lives them through action, during this age of economic and geopolitical crisis.”
Prime Minister Mark Carney, appearing alongside French President Emmanuel Macron in Paris on Monday, said Canada and France must strengthen their ties, adding that ‘Canada is a reliable, trustworthy and strong partner of France.’
Macron said the diplomatic relationship with Canada supports the values both countries hold dear, such as the “development for fair trade and protection of the planet” and the defence of democracy.
“We are receiving you and welcoming you as a friend with great joy and forming of a lot of ambition and many projects together,” he said.
Since U.S. President Donald Trump came back into office, he has imposed tariffs on Canadian goods including steel and aluminum and made numerous remarks about his desire to turn Canada into the 51st state. He is threatening to impose tariffs on all Canadian products on April 2.
Macron did not mention Trump by name but he did condemn the imposition of tariffs on U.S. allies.
“We believe that fair trade that respects international rules is a good thing for everyone’s prosperity,” Macron said. “It’s far more effective than tariffs that simply create inflation and destroy the integration of our economies and our supply chains.”
Partnership on intelligence and security
The leaders did not take questions after their meeting, but according to a readout from the Prime Minister’s Office, they discussed their intention to build stronger security and economic ties “including in the areas of … artificial intelligence, critical minerals and clean energy.”
Carney and Macron also spoke about the need to “defend rules-based free trade.”
The PMO said the meeting also resulted in a new partnership between the countries in the areas of intelligence and security.
“The partnership will focus on enhancing cybersecurity and intelligence-sharing on significant threats,” the readout said. “Key topics will include economic security, violent extremism, counter-proliferation, interference, espionage, sabotage and threats associated with advanced technologies.”
Carney also used the meeting to thank Macron for “organizing several important meetings regarding Ukraine over the past few weeks.”
The prime minister has now wrapped up his European tour and will be stopping in Iqaluit when he returns to Canada on Tuesday.
