New Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney, who was just elected, will visit Paris and London on Monday to strengthen alliances as tensions with US President Donald Trump rise over Canada’s sovereignty and economic policies.
Carney’s initial visit to France and the UK underscores their historical role in shaping Canada’s foundations. On Friday, when he was being sworn in, he categorically dismissed Trump’s Canada-as-the-51st-US state rhetoric and stressed the nation’s distinctiveness based on French, English, and Indigenous culture.
“The Trump factor looms over everything Carney is confronted with today,” said Nelson Wiseman, University of Toronto professor emeritus.
Carney will sit down with French President Emmanuel Macron in Paris before heading to London for discussions with UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer. On his agenda are discussions on diversification of trade and possible coordinated action against Trump’s blanket 25% tariffs. During his time in the UK, Carney will also have an audience with King Charles III, Canada’s head of state a sort of homecoming for the former Bank of England governor.
After his European tour, Carney will head to Canada’s Arctic to reassert national sovereignty in the area before he heads back to Ottawa, where he is set to call an election shortly.
Although Carney has indicated a readiness to see Trump if Canada’s sovereignty is upheld, he has no imminent plans to go to Washington, opting for a phone call with the US president.
Trump’s tariffs and frequent hints that Canada must join the US have sparked Canadian outrage, which has extended to boycotts of American products. Carney’s administration now is reconsidering the buying of US-assembled F-35 fighter jets due to the trade war.
In an election year, Trump’s economic agenda has surprisingly breathed life into the ruling Liberal Party’s fortunes, swinging political momentum into Carney’s side.
