OTTAWA: New Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney on Sunday (Mar 23) called a snap election for Apr 28, saying he needed a strong mandate to deal with the threat posed by US President Donald Trump, who “wants to break us so America can own us”.
The comments showed the extent to which relations between the US and Canada, two long-time allies and major trading partners, have deteriorated since Trump imposed tariffs on Canada and threatened to annex it as the 51st state.
Although the next election was not due until Oct 20, Carney is hoping to capitalise on a remarkable recovery by his Liberal Party in the polls since January, when Trump began threatening Canada and former prime minister Justin Trudeau announced his resignation.
Upon being sworn in as prime minister on Mar 14, Carney had said he could work with and respected Trump. On Sunday, however, he took a more combative approach.
“We are facing the most significant crisis of our lifetimes because of President Trump’s unjustified trade actions and his threats to our sovereignty,” Carney told reporters after the governor general, the personal representative of King Charles, Canada’s head of state, approved his request for an election.
“Our response must be to build a strong economy and a more secure Canada. President Trump claims that Canada isn’t a real country. He wants to break us so America can own us. We will not let that happen.”
The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Carney’s remarks.
Trump on Mar 6 delayed a broad 25 per cent tariff on some Canadian goods for 30 days. He has since imposed tariffs on steel and aluminium imports and threatened reciprocal tariffs on additional goods, including Canadian dairy and lumber, on Apr 2.
