Carney says "Canada is not for sale," and Trump responds: "Never say never."

WashingtonCanadian Prime Minister Mark Carney, who won last week's election thanks to the anti-Donald Trump influence in the country, met with the US president on Tuesday. The first face-to-face meeting between the two leaders comes amid the deteriorating relationship between the two neighboring countries over the Trump's tariff war and also for his comments about annexing Canada. In fact, before Carney, Trump asserted that "the border between Canada and the United States is an artificial line."

In a friendly and amiable tone, Trump once again expressed his imperialist desires and reaffirmed the idea of annexing Canada. Immediately after the US president made the comment, Carney said nothing. In fact, after Carney stated that Canada "is not for sale," Trump responded: "Time will tell, but never say never." The fact that Carney didn't respond to that comment either probably didn't please Canadians. For his part, Trump insisted that he "loves Canada."

Trump has repeatedly asserted that Canada does not deserve to be independent due to its supposed dependence on the United States for trade and defense. Therefore, he insisted that it should be annexed. Before meeting with Carney, the president told the press that the US doesn't need "their cars, their energy, and their timber," and that Canada, on the other hand, "needs EVERYTHING" of them.

"I'm really looking forward to meeting Canada's new Prime Minister, Mark Carney. I'm very interested in working, but I can't wrap my head around a very simple idea: why is the United States subsidizing Canada with $200 billion a year, in addition to providing them with THOUSANDS OF PROTECTION?" before the meeting.

In Trump's tariff war, Canada has been one of the countries that the American president has attacked the most. In negotiations to grant truces to the 25% tariffs, the president always adopted a much tougher position than with Mexico and constantly told his northern neighbor that it should become the 51st state of the country. Currently, the trade escalation has led to a scenario in which 25% tariffs are applied to Canadian imports of steel, aluminum and vehicle assembly parts. In contrast, Washington keeps the 25% tariffs on the goods that are covered by the USMCA.

In fact, Carney has said that some aspects of the USMCA trade agreement, which was signed during the first Trump administration, will have to change, thus aligning himself with the Republican's approach to renegotiating the treaty. "We have a negotiation planned in the next year or so to adjust or terminate it," Trump told reporters. Regarding the trade war and The various U-turns Trump has taken after announcing the reciprocal tariffsThe president has asserted that they are not chaotic, they are flexible. The Republican, who in recent weeks has toned down his approach to China, asserted that Beijing wants to negotiate a trade agreement. "They want to negotiate and meet," Trump said, adding, "And we will meet with them at the appropriate time."

Carney arrived at the White House with the difficult task of striking a balance between the image he has projected within Canada with his anti-Trump platform and a face-to-face meeting. Canadians expected to see a prime minister who wouldn't be afraid to hit back at his counterpart, but, given the Republican's disposition, Carney must watch his step. Furthermore, beyond the tension between the two countries, there was the element of surprise regarding the chemistry between the two leaders. However, Carney was playing with a better card than his predecessor, Justin Trudeau, and he made this clear to Trump at the reception, congratulating him on his victory. "I think Canada has elected someone very talented," he said.

Trump also responds strongly to these dynamics, as seen during the visit of French Prime Minister Emmanuel Macron, where gestures played a key role. Thanks to the good rapport between the two, Macron was able to correct Trump in front of the cameras and emerge virtually unscathed. However, with the visit of Ukrainian Volodymyr Zelensky, the meeting ended with a slammed door after the president and his deputy, JD Vance, launched an attack on him.