Latest news with #CanadaNotForSale
The Independent
21-05-2025
- Politics
- The Independent
King Charles to warn ‘Canada is not for sale' during Ottawa trip after Trump threats
The King is set to warn that ' Canada is not for sale' during his upcoming trip to the country in the face of threats from Donald Trump, the Canadian high commissioner has said. Ralph Goodale said Charles will 'reinforce the power and the strength of that message' when the monarch visits Ottawa later this month, following the US president's repeated suggestions that Canada could become the 51st state. Mr Goodale reiterated his country's sovereignty as the King and Queen visited Canada House in central London on Tuesday ahead of the trip, during which Charles will open a session of the Canadian parliament – the first time a monarch has done so since 1977. Discussing Mr Trump's threats, the high commissioner said that the King's visit will show Canada is 'the true north, strong and free, and we will stay that way'. The trip was organised after the election of former Bank of England governor Mark Carney as Canadian prime minister, amid a wave of anti-Trump sentiment. Mr Goodale said: 'It's a very important opportunity for His Majesty to be in a forum where he will have the opportunity to speak to Canadians at a time when that message about the significance and the strength of Canadian sovereignty needs to be reinforced by every means possible. 'The prime minister has made it clear that Canada is not for sale now, is not for sale ever. The King, as head of state, will reinforce the power and the strength of that message.' It comes as Charles faces the difficult task of balancing his duties as head of state of Canada and his role in Sir Keir Starmer's attempt to maintain strong relations with the US amid international crises including conflicts in Ukraine and Gaza and trade disputes. The King is expected to host Mr Trump for an unprecedented second state visit, after the prime minister handed the president an invitation letter from Charles at the White House in February. Mr Carney criticised the invitation recently, saying it 'cut across' messages his government is trying to send to the White House in response to threats against Canadian sovereignty. The country's new prime minister said Canadians 'weren't impressed' by the gesture 'given the circumstance'. Mr Goodale described Mr Carney's words as 'direct' and 'very accurate'. He said: 'The prime minister was asked the clear, direct question: what do Canadians think? He answered it very directly and very accurately as an assessment of what Canadian public opinion was at that time.' The monarch's arrival at the high commission marked the 100th anniversary of Canada House in London. Mr Goodale presented the King with a key to Canada House, echoing the original cast offered to King George V upon the official opening in 1925, in front of a reception of Canadian citizens and guests. As the King and Queen met Mr Goodale and deputy high commissioner Robert Fry, they were guided through displays including a giant floor map created by The Royal Canadian Geographical Society and Parks Canada, which showed the country's national parks and cultural heritage sites. Charles and Mr Goodale then saw exhibitions dedicated to the history of Canada House and the two countries' bilateral relations. The displays included a desk under which former Canadian prime minister Lester B Pearson sheltered from explosions when working at the high commission in 1941 while London was bombed by Nazi Germany during the Blitz.
Times
21-05-2025
- Politics
- Times
King Charles's trip to Ottawa will tell US ‘Canada is not for sale'
The King will 'reinforce the power and the strength of the message' to President Trump that 'Canada is not for sale' when he visits the country next week, the country's high commissioner has said. Visiting the country for the first time as its head of state, the King will travel with the Queen to Ottawa on Monday to open the country's parliament. Before their visit, Charles and Camilla toured Canada House in Trafalgar Square, where they were shown a giant map of the country's historic sites. Ralph Goodale, the high commissioner for Canada in the UK, said that the visit would be significant. Mark Carney, the newly elected prime minister of Canada, told the the US president that Canada was not for sale after Trump's
CBC
08-05-2025
- Politics
- CBC
World leaders have performed a diplomatic dance in Trump's Oval Office. Has it paid off?
Social Sharing Prime Minister Mark Carney became the most recent world leader to meet U.S. President Donald Trump in the Oval Office, an event that has taken on an unusual significance and become something of a spectator sport for political observers. As reported by The Associated Press, the interaction offered "a glimpse into how Trump has transformed Oval Office meetings from brief and bland encounters into precarious affairs that often force foreign leaders to choose between placating or confronting the American president." With Trump setting the terms, the meetings have become something of a "no-win situation" for foreign leaders seeking an audience with Trump, New York Times White House correspondent Maggie Haberman told CNN's Anderson Cooper. Carney, she said, clearly came in with a prepared line that Canada is not for sale, but then had to navigate to ensure the meeting would not devolve into anything reminiscent of the debacle when Volodymyr Zelenskyy visited in February. WATCH | How did Carney do on his first trip to Washington as prime minister? Mark Carney told voters he was the man to deal with Trump. How did he do in his first meeting? 2 days ago Duration 17:46 CBC News Erin Collins and Power & Politics host David Cochrane unpack the big headlines of Mark Carney's meeting with Donald Trump in Washington. Additionally, former Liberal deputy prime minister Sheila Copps says Carney was 'artful' in his delivery. Haberman and Cooper suggested there was a kind of spectrum for how world leaders have approached Trump in the Oval Office, with British Prime Minister Keir Starmer's positive visit on one end and the disastrous meeting with the Ukranian president on the other. She suggested Carney hewed more toward the Starmer end of the spectrum. It may be too early to discern whether the Canadian prime minister's approach to Trump will net any benefits. But what about French President Emmanuel Macron, Starmer and Zelenskyy, who met with Trump just days apart in late February? Here's a look at their varying approaches to dealing with the U.S. president and what kind of results they achieved. French President Emmanuel Macron The approach: Macron's meeting with Trump was marked by hugs and extended handshakes, references to "Dear Donald" and repeated proclamations of their friendship and "very special relationship." Helen Cook, director of the Institute for Diplomacy and International Affairs at Loughborough University London, wrote in an essay for the academic website The Conversation that Macron delivered a "master class in the diplomatic arts." "Unthreatening body language and public displays of affection? Check. Meeting your interlocutor on any and every inch of common ground? Check," she wrote, referring to Macron's fluent English and the way he recalled Trump's visit to Paris for the reopening of Notre Dame cathedral. She also praised Macron for "gently correcting" Trump when the president asserted that Europe would get back 60 per cent of the aid it gave to Ukraine. Touching Trump's arm, Macron said: "No, in fact, to be frank, we paid." WATCH | Macron interrupts Trump on Ukraine: Macron interrupts Trump on Ukraine, says Europe provides 'real money' not just loans 2 months ago Duration 1:09 Cook said that on this occasion, Macron "outperformed even himself, and outclassed his host by some degree." Macron, who has established a friendly relationship with Trump over the years, was the first European leader to visit since the president began his second term. The meeting marked three years since Russia's invasion of Ukraine, and Macron used the opportunity to try to persuade Trump about Ukraine's need for security guarantees as part of any peace deal. Trump expressed a desire for a ceasefire as soon as possible and said he was trying to arrange one between Ukraine and Russia. But Macron urged a more deliberate approach, starting with a truce and then a peace deal that includes security guarantees. "This peace must not mean a surrender of Ukraine. It must not mean a ceasefire without guarantees. This peace must allow for Ukrainian sovereignty and allow Ukraine to negotiate with other stakeholders regarding the issues that affect it," Macron said. The results: Macron referred to the discussions with Trump as a "turning point." But as New York Times chief White House correspondent Peter Baker wrote: "For all the clubby hugs and handshakes they could not disguise the growing rift between the United States and Europe over the Ukraine war." As Baker noted, Trump made no mention of guarantees or Ukrainian sovereignty. British Prime Minister Keir Starmer The approach: Starmer certainly used the charm offensive on his first visit to the White House. He, like Macron, was hoping to secure some security guarantees for Ukraine in any peace deal with Russia. But Starmer was also looking for an exemption from Trump's punishing tariffs on U.K. steel and aluminum imports. WATCH | Trump, Starmer discuss ending Ukraine war during White House visit: Trump, Starmer discuss ending Ukraine war during White House visit 2 months ago Duration 2:12 Part of Starmer's approach was to appeal to Trump's great affinity for the monarchy. He handed Trump a personalized letter from King Charles inviting Trump for a second state visit. "It was a precision-guided move designed specifically to target the former TV game show host," Tristen Naylor, director of the Oxbridge Diplomatic Academy, wrote on the website Medium. "Moreover, Sir Keir delivered his performance with language borrowed directly from Trump's characteristic patter, offering superlatives and compliments at every opportunity," Naylor wrote. Starmer also praised Trump for his efforts in trying to ending the war between Russia and Ukraine, saying he had "created a moment of tremendous opportunity to reach a historic peace deal." But he wasn't in complete lockstep with Trump, using language, in reference to Ukraine, that Trump has avoided. For example, Starmer referred to Russia as the invader, and cautioned that there cannot be peace "that rewards the aggressor." Trump, for his part, was also full of praise for Starmer, saying the prime minister was a "very tough negotiator" who was "working hard" to convince him not to impose tariffs and had "earned whatever the hell they pay him over there." "I think we could very well end up with a real trade deal where the tariffs wouldn't be necessary, we'll see," Trump said. The results: On Thursday, the United States and Great Britain announced plans for a trade deal with the U.K. that still has to be finalized and would keep in place the baseline 10 per cent tariffs Trump unveiled in April It would lead to more beef and ethanol exports to Britain. In return, however, U.K. officials said that according to this deal, Trump's auto tariffs would go from 27.5 per cent to 10 per cent on a quota of 100,000 vehicles and import taxes on steel and aluminum would go from 25 per cent to zero. Ukranian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy The approach: Trump's meeting with Zelenskyy turned into a public lashing of the Ukranian president, who was berated by both the U.S. president and Vice-President JD Vance, who reprimanded him for not showing enough gratitude for America's aid to his country. WATCH | What Zelenskyy wanted from Trump before the shouting started: What Zelenskyy wanted from Trump before the shouting started 2 months ago Duration 5:23 Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy's key message to the U.S. was all but drowned out when an Oval Office meeting with President Donald Trump devolved into a public shouting match. CBC's Ellen Mauro cuts through the chaos of that day to reveal what Ukraine was really after and how a history of diplomatic disappointment has left the country desperate for U.S. security guarantees. The shouting match erupted after Vance stressed the need for diplomacy to resolve the conflict. Zelenskyy, with his arms folded, countered that Putin could not be trusted in any talks and noted that Vance had never visited Ukraine. Trump and Vance called Zelenskyy, "disrespectful," with Trump saying that Zelenskyy was "not in a good position." "You don't have the cards right now. With us, you start having cards," Trump said. The blowup led to the rest of Zelenskyy's White House visit being cancelled and he left without signing a deal that would allow the two countries to jointly develop Ukraine's natural resources. The results: That confrontation led the White House to briefly pause U.S. military assistance and intelligence sharing with Ukraine. But Trump and Zelenskyy would have another face-to-face meeting, this time for about 15 minutes while attending the funeral of Pope Francis at the Vatican last month. Trump said it was "a beautiful meeting," while Zelenskyy said it was their best conversation to date. "Maybe it was the shortest, but it was the most substantive," he told reporters in his office. "With all respect to our teams, this tête-à-tête format, in my opinion, worked." Days later, and after months of tense negotiations, the U.S. and Ukraine signed a deal that is expected to give Washington access to the country's critical minerals and other natural resources, and that Kyiv hopes will secure long-term support for its defence against Russia. According to Ukrainian officials, this new version of the deal is far more beneficial to Ukraine than previous versions, which they said reduced Kyiv to a junior partner and gave Washington unprecedented rights to the country's resources, The Associated Press reported.
