{"id":181549,"date":"2026-08-25T00:14:16","date_gmt":"2026-08-25T00:14:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/canada\/181549\/"},"modified":"2026-08-25T00:14:16","modified_gmt":"2026-08-25T00:14:16","slug":"canada-setting-new-course-in-wake-of-failed-talks-with-usa","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/canada\/181549\/","title":{"rendered":"Canada setting new course in wake of failed talks with USA"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Carney,<\/a>Prime Minister Mark Carney in Quebec on Aug 24, 2026. [livestream]
\n \"CANADIAN<\/a> <\/p>\n

Monday August 24, 2026 | L\u00e9vis, Qu\u00e9bec<\/p>\n

by Mary P Brooke | Island Social Trends<\/p>\n

Today Prime Minister Mark Carney made his first regular regional and industry-related government funding announcement since the bombshell rejection of the trade deal that was under negotiation with the United States.<\/p>\n

That was a shipbuilding investment announcement in Levis, Quebec.<\/p>\n

But he also provided insights as to the changing evolving course of Canada in economic trade relations \u2014 not just with the USA but more broadly.<\/p>\n

Canada setting a new course:<\/p>\n

Notably, Carney\u2019s revised general message of introduction about government investments was usually about how the world is a more divided, dangerous place. Now it is this:<\/p>\n

\u201cIn a rapidly changing world, Canada is setting a new course. We are building our strength at home, diversifying our trading relationships abroad, and investing in the infrastructure that will secure our future. From the ports and corridors that move Canadian goods to market, to the ships that keep our trade routes open, we are laying the foundations of a stronger, more self-reliant country,\u201d said Carney in his news release today.<\/p>\n

\"carney,<\/a>Prime Minister Mark Carney announced a shipbuilding contract for six new icebreakers, in Quebec on Aug 24, 2026, along with Jo\u00ebl Lightbound, Minister of Government Transformation, Public Works and Procurement and Qu\u00e9bec Lieutenant and Quebec Premier Christine Fr\u00e9chette. [livestream]<\/p>\n

\u201cEstablished trading relationships are being tested, and Canada is not standing still. We are moving fast, seizing new opportunities, and reducing our dependence on any single partner,\u201d says Canada\u2019s prime minister in newly describing this country\u2019s approach to trade diversification.<\/p>\n

\"ist<\/a><\/p>\n

Europe is written on the wall:<\/p>\n

An active trade diversification program has been underway by Carney since he first took office in April 2025. Much of that has been focussed on Europe.<\/p>\n

Today he said in Quebec: \u201cThis fall we will begin intense discussions with the European Union, the world\u2019s second-largest economy, to build a much strong and deeper economic and security partnership.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"IST<\/a><\/p>\n

Coastline is key:<\/p>\n

Canada is a trading nation with the world\u2019s longest coastline. <\/p>\n

\u201cToday, we are strengthening our capacity to build ships at home, assert our presence in the Arctic, keep our waterways open, and move Canadian resources to new markets around the world,\u201d said Carney.<\/p>\n

\"book<\/a><\/p>\n

Carney on Trump:<\/p>\n

Will Canada\u2019s walking away from the trade negotiation table on Friday August 22 lead to an \u201cuncontrollable escalation\u201d (as asked by a reporter in Quebec today)?<\/p>\n

Carney said the US response (to say that Canada was at fault) was not a surprise.<\/p>\n

The prime minister says that workers in states that build vehicles in the US that those workers rely on Canadian demand. <\/p>\n

\u201cThis is the most successful automotive partnership in history. It\u2019s existed for 60 years,\u201d said Carney, in the context of how the US proposed deal would have slowly dismantled the Ontario-based vehicle manufacturing industry.<\/p>\n

\"ist,<\/a>In this municipal election year, get signed up for the Island Social Trends Premium ENews.<\/p>\n

Can there be a deal?<\/p>\n

Canada was able to confirm \u201cthrough the terms they were offering\u201d that the US direction with negotiations would gradually have the impact of dismantling the auto industry and further impacting Canada\u2019s economy. \u201cIt\u2019s very revealing that this is where they\u2019d go.\u201d <\/p>\n

\u201cThere is a mutually beneficial deal possible here, but it has to be one that respects Canada\u2019s sovereignty,\u201d said Carney, adding that a deal should not tear apart the auto manufacturing sector for short-term gain. He said \u201cthat\u2019s the offer\u201d that the US effectively proposed.<\/p>\n

\"ist<\/a><\/p>\n

\u201cWhen the Americans go to the negotiating table first with the right attitude toward our industries and a true partnership, of course we\u2019ll come to the negotiating table,\u201d said Carney in response to a question from a Globe and Mail reporter today. <\/p>\n

\u201cThere is an existing arrangement between our countries and Mexico that works. It can be improved. There\u2019s ways to improve it and we will work to improve it in ways that are to the benefit of Canadians but also to the benefit of Americans and the people in Mexico,\u201d said Carney.<\/p>\n

\"mexico,<\/a>President of Mexico Claudia Sheinbaum met with Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney during the G7 Leaders\u2019 Summit in Alberta, June 17, 2025. [livestream]<\/p>\n

\u201cBut an attitude at the negotiating table that Canada is a subsidiary of the United States, that Canadian industry is going to be disadvantaged relative to American industry, that we\u2019re going to set up terms so that over time Canadian industry is going to face constant headwinds \u2014 that\u2019s not something we\u2019re going to accept,\u201d said Prime Minister Carney today. <\/p>\n

And he added: \u201cAnd that\u2019s before you get to constraints on our ability to do what the rest of the world wants which is to sign trade deals with Canada. And that\u2019s before the very fundamental issues on culture.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"monk<\/a><\/p>\n

Producing what we need, now and forward:<\/p>\n

Canada\u2019s prime minister went more broadly to encourage other countries to \u201ctake the lesson of what we see today\u201d about the US, and that the solution includes investing in technology and putting workers and families first, such as with the icebreaker announcement today<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere is a strategic advantage in producing what we need,\u201d said Carney today. The steel for the ships is Canadian. That\u2019s a core advantage, said Carney, pointing out that what\u2019s happened over the last week with the US will affect the shipbuilding program that was announced today<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Building these ships will be a reminder to the United States of the \u201cmany things the United States needs from Canada\u201d, pointing out that the USA has only one icebreaker and Canada has 20. The new ships will be \u201cbest in class\u201d. Engineering, production and supply chain management were highlighted by the prime minister, as key aspects that will set up the Davie shipbuilding manufacturer for more contracts internationally. <\/p>\n

\u201cThis is the launch pad. As important as today\u2019s contract is, it\u2019s what\u2019s to come that is more important,\u201d said Carney, who said that Canada will be part of a \u201csensible world after the fever breaks\u201d.<\/p>\n

\"ist<\/a>Local, regional and national news insights at IslandSocialTrends.ca .<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Prime Minister Mark Carney in Quebec on Aug 24, 2026. [livestream] Monday August 24, 2026 | L\u00e9vis, Qu\u00e9bec…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":181550,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[17,3848,7194,443,445,12428],"class_list":["post-181549","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-canada","tag-canada","tag-european-union","tag-main-economy","tag-main-politics","tag-prime-minister-mark-carney","tag-shipbuilding"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/canada\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/181549","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/canada\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/canada\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/canada\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/canada\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=181549"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/canada\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/181549\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/canada\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/181550"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/canada\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=181549"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/canada\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=181549"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/canada\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=181549"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}