Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney stated on Sunday that Canada’s long-standing close relationship with the United States has become a liability that Ottawa must now urgently fix. In a video address titled “Forward Guidance,” Carney said: “The US has fundamentally changed its approach to trade, raising its tariffs to levels last seen during the Great Depression.”
Hope is not a plan
“Many of our former strengths, based on our close ties to America, have become our weaknesses, weaknesses that we must correct,” Carney said. He dismissed any expectation that Washington would return to its previous trade posture, adding: “Hope isn’t a plan, and nostalgia is not a strategy.” Carney unveiled an ambitious strategy called “Canada Strong,” aiming to catalyze $1 trillion in investment, unify provincial economies into a single internal market, build new trade and energy corridors, and double clean energy capacity.
Defense overhaul and US relations
Carney announced the largest increase in Canadian defense investment in generations, pledging to rebuild and rearm the Canadian Armed Forces and meet NATO spending targets for the first time since the Cold War. He reiterated that “the days of our military sending 70 cents of every dollar to the United States are over.” Relations between Ottawa and Washington have deteriorated sharply under President Trump, who imposed tariffs and suggested Canada become the 51st US state.