Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney confirmed Saturday that he apologized to U.S. President Donald Trump for an anti-tariff ad featuring former U.S. leader Ronald Reagan and had told Ontario Premier Doug Ford not to run it.
Trump announced he would raise tariffs on Canadian goods by an additional 10 percent and ended all trade talks following what he called the “fake” anti-tariff ad campaign.
“I apologized to the president. The president was offended,” Carney told reporters in the South Korean city of Gyeongju, adding that trade talks would restart when the United States is “ready.”
Carney also confirmed that he had reviewed the ad with Ford before it aired, but said he had objected to using it.
“I told Ford I didn’t want to move forward with the announcement,” he said.
The ad, commissioned by Ford, an outspoken conservative politician who is sometimes compared to Trump, uses a quote from Republican icon and former President Reagan saying that tariffs cause trade wars and economic disasters.
Carney also called talks with Chinese leader Xi Jinping a “turning point” in relations, adding that it had raised sensitive issues such as foreign interference with Beijing.
Canada’s relations with China have been among the worst of any Western nation, but both are on the receiving end of Trump’s tariff attack, even after Xi and the U.S. leader agreed Thursday to reduce tensions.
China and Canada held their first formal talks between their leaders since 2017 on Friday.
“We have now opened a path to address current problems,” Carney told reporters in the South Korean city of Gyeongju, referring to China.
“Our general discussion was constructive,” he added.
Carney said on Saturday that he had accepted an invitation from Xi to visit him “in the new year.”
“I directed our ministers and officials to work together to find solutions to current challenges and identify areas of cooperation and growth,” he said.
