Hours before Canada’s trade minister arrived in Washington on Tuesday for trade talks, President Trump posted an article about Canada being in a technical recession accompanied with a familiar comment: “51st state!”

It was the first time in months that Mr. Trump used the phrase that’s fueled a wave of Canadian patriotism and recast the country’s political fortunes.

The two neighbors — allies with closely integrated economies — have been navigating a period of profound mistrust since his second term, as Mr. Trump has repeatedly used menacing language about Canada, and threatened to make it part of the United States.

But things had been calmer in recent weeks. Then, the post on Monday evening reignited anger about Mr. Trump’s demeaning and menacing attitude toward Canada, just days before the two countries, alongside Mexico, begin co-hosting the World Cup.

The post, which was reposted by the U.S. ambassador to Canada, highlights the tense atmosphere as the United States, Canada and Mexico are wading into a review of their free-trade agreement.

Mr. Trump included a link to a Bloomberg article about Canada’s economy experiencing two consecutive quarters of negative growth, with the comment, “51st State!”

Mr. Trump’s disrespect propelled the rise of Canada’s prime minister, Mark Carney, who won an election last spring promising to strengthen the economy and make it more independent of the United States. The two men have enjoyed a seemingly positive chemistry during their in-person meetings, but their relationship appears to have worsened since Mr. Carney made a high-profile speech in January, describing the end of an era of U.S. hegemony and calling on “middle powers” like Canada to stick together to survive.

Last week, Mr. Carney struck a conciliatory tone in a speech in New York, suggesting that a stronger, independent Canada would be a better partner for the United States.

The United States and Mexico have already begun formally negotiating changes to their trade agreement, and the United States Trade Representatives’ office has released a schedule for the next rounds of talks, which will extend well into July.

But there has been silence on the Canada-United States negotiations.

The two nations have not begun formal discussions, nor is there a plan for how those will play out in the coming weeks and months.

Updated 

June 2, 2026, 6:55 p.m. ET

The United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement, which Mr. Trump signed into law in his first term, is set to be reviewed by July 1, but it is broadly acknowledged that discussions will last further into the summer.

The United States has largely exempted Canada and Mexico from the country-specific blanket tariffs it has imposed on most nations around the world, because of the U.S.M.C.A.

But U.S. tariffs on industrial sectors, including autos, aluminum, steel and lumber, are badly hurting pockets of the Canadian economy.

On Tuesday afternoon, Dominic LeBlanc, Canada’s minister in charge of trade met with Jamieson Greer, the United States Trade Representative, in Washington, to discuss how negotiations between the two countries will proceed.

In a letter to the United States and Mexico ahead of his Washington visit, Mr. LeBlanc said that Canada would like to see the U.S.M.C.A. renewed for another 16 years. Mexico sent a similar letter with the same suggestion to Canada and the United States. In a news conference following his meeting on Tuesday in Washington, Mr. LeBlanc said the United States had sent its own letter, but did not disclose its content.

The Trump administration has said it doesn’t see the agreement in the same positive light, despite Canada and Mexico being the country’s two trading partners. Mr. Trump has repeatedly claimed Canada does not have anything that the United States wants. Yet when he signed the agreement, he described it as a triumph.

“The USMCA is the fairest, most balanced, and beneficial trade agreement we have ever signed into law. It’s the best agreement we’ve ever made,” Mr. Trump said in a January 2020 speech. The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment about the meetings or the president’s social media post.

Mr. Greer, an experienced trade expert who is one of the architects of that deal, has said it has been overly advantageous for Canada at the expense of the United States.

Following his meeting with Mr. Greer, Mr. LeBlanc said that the two sides had some technical discussions. Mr. LeBlanc described the atmosphere in the meeting as “cordial,” but added that Canada was braced for a bumpy road ahead.

“I don’t underestimate the potential moments of turbulence that could occur in the next few weeks and months,” Mr. LeBlanc said.