US President Donald Trump met with Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney and Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum, with the talks partly focused on the future of a North American free trade deal.
The leaders met in Washington on the sidelines of the draw for the 2026 World Cup, co-hosted by Canada, Mexico and the United States.
“The three leaders met for approximately 45 minutes,” Mr Carney spokesperson Audrey Champoux said in an email.
Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney draws during the FIFA World Cup 2026 Official Draw
“They’ve agreed to keep working together on CUSMA,” she added, using the Canadian acronym for the existing free trade deal between the three countries, which Americans call the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA).
The USMCA deal was struck during Mr Trump’s first term.
President Trump has slapped steep tariffs on exports from Canada and Mexico that do not fall under the USMCA, which the US is seeking to renegotiate next year.
Yesterday’s talks were the first between Mr Trump and Ms Sheinbaum.
Mr Carney has visited the White House twice since Mr Trump’s return to power, but it will be his first encounter with Mr Trump – except for a brief meeting at a summit in South Korea – since the US leader suspended trade talks in a bizarre row over an anti-tariff ad.
Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum vowed that air strikes Mexico to tackle alleged traffickers ‘will never happen’
Mr Trump has also threatened further punishment if they fail to curb cross-border migration and drug trafficking – and irked Ms Sheinbaum by saying he would be “OK” with air strikes on Mexico to tackle traffickers.
She has vowed the strikes will never happen.
Canada also was outraged by Mr Trump’s calls earlier this year for it to become the 51st US state.
Mr Carney drew criticism at recent G20 meetings in South Africa when, asked by a reporter when he last spoke to Mr Trump, answered, “Who cares?”
The three countries launched their joint World Cup bid in 2017 during President Trump’s first term in the White House.
Mr Trump said that the United States had worked closely with Mexico and Canada over the tournament, adding “the coordination and friendship and relationship has been outstanding.”
US President Donald Trump puts on a medal as he receives the FIFA Peace Prize from FIFA President Gianni Infantino
It comes as Mr Trump was given the first ever FIFA peace prize during the ceremony.
Mr Trump and FIFA president Gianni Infantino have formed a close bond and Mr Trump has now been handed a new prize from football’s global governing body which recognises individuals who have made “exceptional contributions to peace and unity”.
The award is a hugely controversial one, with human rights campaigners having urged FIFA earlier this week not to hand the prize to Mr Trump.
In accepting the award, Mr Trump said it was “one of the great honours” of his life.
Additional reporting by PA