Hold for Mark Carney

Politico

2 days ago

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It's Monday.
Canada Playbook turned 4 over the weekend. Thanks for waking up with us.
In today's edition:
→ Inside the PM's high-stakes, 100-day phone blitz.
→ Trade tensions, Gaza flashpoints and the Trump-Putin wild card.
→ What's on Tim Hodgson's desk.
Trade war
AURA FARMING — Prime Minister MARK CARNEY says he'll next speak with DONALD TRUMP when it makes sense.
While the U.S. president is on hold, the PM has spent months burning up the phone lines — a 100-day-plus post-election charm offensive with at least 55 counterparts.
The Prime Minister's Office shares public summaries of the private conversations, known in the biz as 'a readout.' Playbook sorted through them, back to April 28 when the Liberal government won — and French President EMMANUEL MACRON was first on the horn to say, Félicitations.
— Meeting count: More than 90.
— On the agenda: The PM uses the calls to pitch Canadian energy, push AI and quantum, and to sound out allies on defense procurement.
— Spotted on the phone log: MACRON, DONALD TRUMP, VOLODYMYR ZELENSKYY, ANTÓNIO COSTA, ANTÓNIO GUTERRES, SHIGERU ISHIBA, CHRISTOPHER LUXON, URSULA VON DER LEYEN, ANTHONY ALBANESE, METTE FREDERIKSEN, KEIR STARMER, PEDRO SÁNCHEZ, CLAUDIA SHEINBAUM, DICK SCHOOF, SERGIO MATTARELLA, GIORGIA MELONI, FRIEDRICH MERZ, ROSEN ZHELYAZKOV, EVIKA SILIŅA, LUC FRIEDEN, ANDREJ PLENKOVIĆ, ISAAC HERZOG, MICHAEL D. HIGGINS.
— Favorite things: Trade, defense and energy — a notable shift from the priorities of former Prime Minister JUSTIN TRUDEAU, who often focused on humanitarian needs, climate change and the rule of law.
— Buzzing with energy: Carney, who keeps promising to turn Canada into an 'energy superpower,' talks up conventional energy and green energy, promoting nuclear power and critical minerals.
His sales pitch has also been interspersed by meetings with Canada's premiers, who have been carving out strategies to find customers for their natural resources in new global markets, especially in Europe and the Indo-Pacific.
→ Audience: Denmark, Iceland, Norway, Sweden, Brazil, U.K., Australia, South Africa, Netherlands, European Commission, France, Estonia, Chile, Italy, Germany, Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, Mexico, Malaysia, Belgium, India and Singapore.
— Also spotted: SANTIAGO PEÑA, BOLA AHMED TINUBU, JD VANCE, DONALD TUSK, JONAS GAHR STØRE, KING ABDULLAH II, MOHAMMED BIN SALMAN AL SAUD, PRABOWO SUBIANTO, LI QIANG, NARENDRA MODI, MARK RUTTE, LUIZ INÁCIO LULA DA SILVA, MOHAMED BIN ZAYED AL NAHYAN, BART DE WEVER, ULF KRISTERSSON, KING WILLEM-ALEXANDER and QUEEN MÁXIMA, EDGARS RINKĒVIČS, KRISTEN MICHAL, KRISTRÚN MJÖLL FROSTADÓTTIR, ABDEL FATTAH EL-SISI, FERDINAND MARCOS JR., ANWAR IBRAHIM, GABRIEL BORIC, LAWRENCE WONG, MAHMOUD ABBAS.
— House in order: Carney's agenda items on global phone calls align with his domestic agenda. The PM has cast himself as a wartime leader, uniting provinces, pushing for energy dominance and pledging to vault Canada's economic growth rate to the top of the G7.
He often cites World War II as a 'hinge moment,' and says today's 'dangerous and divided world,' including Trump's tariffs, presents a similar turning point that demands bold and coordinated action.
— Hey, bestie: The PM's closest overseas confidants have been European Commission President VON DER LEYEN, French President MACRON, United Kingdom PM STARMER, Ukraine President ZELENSKYY and Mexico President SHEINBAUM. Carney touches base with each of them at least once a month — sometimes more.
He's also kept in close touch with PMs MELONI and SCHOOF.
— Taking the temperature: The Prime Minister's Office signs off nearly every readout with a look to the road ahead.
— Diplomatic tell: Variations on the phrase 'will remain in close contact' are reserved for those who pass the vibe check.
When the PM met with Trump and Vance on different occasions, the adjective 'close' was nowhere to be found.
Here's what the tone of those readouts reveals about Canada's evolving relationships with each country. Warm = Remaining in close contact. Medium = Staying in touch. Cold = No mention of future communication.
→ Warm: France, United Kingdom, European Union, Europe, Japan, United Nations, New Zealand, Australia, Mexico, Jordan, Saudi Arabia, Brazil, Nordic countries, Philippines and Chile.
→ Medium: United States, India, Egypt and Indonesia.
→ Cold: China.
— In related reading: BEA VONGDOUANGCHANH took sum of the PM's first 100 days, then noted: 'The real test starts now.'
THE ROOMS THAT MATTER
— Prime Minister MARK CARNEY is spending the week in the Ottawa area on a staycation that his office says will include staying in close contact with his officials on several economic and security priorities for the weeks ahead.
THREE THINGS WE'RE WATCHING
TRADE TALKS — So, when will it make 'sense' for the PM to get POTUS on the horn to discuss the economic and security pact that failed to materialize by the president's Aug. 1 deadline?
Carney offered no hints during his most recent media avail. And about the timing of talks related to the renewal of the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement, he indicated he's in no hurry.
— To recap: Carney has suggested it would begin in about nine months; Canada-U.S. Trade Minister DOMINIC LEBLANC told POLITICO recently the review could come as early as this fall.
— The latest: The U.S. Department of Commerce says it has made a final decision to more than double countervailing duties on Canadian softwood lumber imports, The Canadian Press reports.
— In related reading: 'Canada is living through an era of acute, sustained, profound and abiding rage,' Toronto writer STEPHEN MARCHE writes in The New York Times. 'The source is President Trump; the object is the United States.'
GAZA — Canada's decision to join allies such as France and the U.K. with a stated intention to recognize Palestine as a state drew scorn from Israeli Prime Minister BENJAMIN NETANYAHU on Sunday.
During an event at CFB Trenton on Friday, Carney was sharply critical of Israel's plan to take over all of Gaza.
'It is going to put the lives of the hostages at greater risk, rather than lessening it,' the prime minister said. An hour later, he released a statement condemning the Israeli action because it would 'further escalate' the conflict.
— In related reading: The AP reports that Australia plans to recognize a Palestinian state, Prime Minister ANTHONY ALBANESE said today.
TWOSOME OR THREESOME — President TRUMP says he plans to meet Russian President VLADIMIR PUTIN in Alaska on Friday to discuss an end to the conflict with Ukraine. And though the White House says he's open to including Ukrainian President VOLODYMYR ZELENSKYY, the plan right now is for it to be only a Trump-Putin meeting.
— NATO is optimistic: NATO Secretary-General MARK RUTTE said Sunday this week's meeting will go a long way to demonstrating whether Putin is serious about peace.
— Allies rally: The leaders of the U.K., France, Italy, Germany, Poland, Finland and the European Commission said in a joint statement that Ukraine should be at the table where its future is discussed.
— Why that matters: Trump has suggested there might be some 'swapping' of territory to get to a deal. Zelenskyy and his European allies firmly reject that idea.
CONVERSATION STARTER
MAJOR PROJECTS — Before the kids are back at school, expect the ribbon to be cut on Ottawa's Major Federal Projects Office. It's part of CARNEY's plan to spur 'nation-building' to bolster the economy against the shocks of TRUMP's tariffs.
— The big get: Playbook recently interviewed Energy and Natural Resources Minister TIM HODGSON about his project list.
Here are five things that came up in our conversation:
→ 'Infrastructure corridors,' he said, pointing to 'the Grays Bay component to the western Arctic corridor — that will unlock many significant critical middle opportunities.'
→ An energy partnership that links Canada's six eastern provinces — the four Maritime provinces and Ontario and Quebec. '[It] will actually connect 60 gigawatts of wind and 15 gigawatts of new hydroelectric power in a connected grid across the six provinces. It'll improve the stability of the grid. It'll improve the baseload of the grid, and allow us to sell that energy in the form of potentially clean hydrogen to Europe.'
→ Critical minerals clusters: 'We have the second-biggest land mass in the world. We have 30-plus of the critical minerals. And we know where they are. We have world-class mining companies, we have the technology.'
→ Nuclear: Hodgson said the government is focused on small modular reactors.
→ Export diversification infrastructure: He said this could include projects on the Atlantic and Pacific coasts, and at the Port of Montreal.
MORNING MUST-CLICKS
— The attack of a Jewish father in front of his children in a Montreal neighborhood has drawn widespread condemnation, The Gazette's KALINA LAFRAMBOISE reports.
— On 'The House,' DAVID THURTON of CBC News examined where the Carney government sits on Canada's climate targets.
— The Canadian Press reports that another day of punishing heat and humidity is expected to hit Ontario, Quebec and the four Atlantic provinces today.
— From BRIAN DABBS and SARA SCHONHARDT of POLITICO's E&E News: Trump team pushes to oust No. 2 official at world energy body.
— TOM NICHOLS noted in The Atlantic: 'If all anyone knows about Golden Dome is that it will be an expensive, all-azimuth defense against everything that flies, then the Pentagon's reluctance to discuss it is understandable.'
— NATAN OBED, president of Inuit Tapiriit Kanatami, spoke with 'The Hot Room' pod about what Canada's Inuit want from the federal government.
LOBBY WATCH
— TONY VALERI recently posted 25 meetings on behalf of ArcelorMittal Dofasco, including check-ins with Clerk of the Privy Council MICHAEL SABIA, PMO chief of staff MARC-ANDRÉ BLANCHARD and Energy Minister TIM HODGSON.
PLAYBOOKERS
Birthdays: HBD to retired politician NORM KELLY, Quebec politician SOL ZANETTI and former MP TONY VALERI.
Spotted: MARK CARNEY's cat NICO on X.
Movers and shakers: ZEUS EDEN, Toronto Mayor OLIVIA CHOW's press secretary, is moving to London — England, not Ontario — for graduate studies in climate change, management and finance.
GRANTLY FRANKLIN started a new role as consul, foreign policy and diplomacy service at the Consulate General of Canada in Detroit.
Noted: PETER VAN PRAAGH, president of the Halifax International Security Forum, told the Globe: 'Skipping Halifax doesn't make the U.S. look strong. It makes it look unsure of its own ideas – afraid to engage, to be questioned, to be seen.' POLITICO's scoop on the story is here.
Media mentions: APTN is celebrating its 25th anniversary.
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PROZONE
For Pro subscribers, our latest policy newsletter.
In other news for Pro readers:
— Swiss lawmakers turn against F-35 deal after Trump's tariff bombshell.
— Big Tech's next major political battle may already be brewing in your backyard.
— WTO cuts 2026 trade forecast as Trump tariff hike takes hold.
— Foreign governments bet big to lobby Trump on tariffs. Most came up empty.
— Solar imports caught in Trump crackdown on Chinese forced labor.
TRIVIA
Friday's answer: For JOE CLARK's 75th birthday, his family commissioned a major orchestral work by Edmonton-based composer JOHN ESTACIO.
Props to GANGA WIGNARAJAH, ELIZABETH BURN, JENN KEAY, JOHN PEPPER, ROBERT MCDOUGALL, MALCOLM MCKAY, FRED SAGEL, MAIA EASTMAN, AMY CASTLE, CHRIS RANDS, YAROSLAV BARAN, RAY DEL BIANCO, JOHN MERRIMAN, PAUL WELLS, LAURA A. GRAY, DARRYL DAMUDE, MARC SHAW and MARCEL MARCOTTE.
Today's question: In recognition of what occasion was 'Hymn to Freedom' performed in June at Expo 2025 in Osaka, Japan.
Send your answer to [e-mail]
Canada Playbook would not happen without: Canada Editor Sue Allan, editor Willa Plank and POLITICO's Grace Maalouf.