Canada integrated into the USA? A battle of words at the White House

Canada's new Prime Minister Mark Carney said Tuesday that his country would "never be for sale" during his meeting with Donald Trump at the White House.

"There are places that are never for sale," he said after the US president again explained that it would be "better" for his neighbor to become a US state, as it would be a "wonderful marriage."

Donald Trump also told Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney on Tuesday that he would "love" to find a new trade agreement with Ottawa, while insisting that he did not want cars or steel from his northern neighbor. Asked by the press if he would like Canada to become the first country to conclude a trade agreement with him, the American president replied: "I would love to."

Donald Trump later said: "We don't really want cars from Canada, and we've put tariffs on Canadian cars. (...) And we really don't want steel from Canada, or aluminum from Canada, or certain other goods, because we want to make them ourselves."

"We have a huge trade deficit with Canada," Donald Trump declared in the Oval Office of the White House. It stood at $63.3 billion in 2024 on goods, according to Washington. "Canada is a country that will have to be able to stand on its own two feet economically," he added. "There is no reason for us to subsidize Canada."

At his side, Mark Carney insisted: Canada "is the United States' most important customer." In services, not goods, the United States has a trade surplus of $31.7 billion with Canada.

Donald Trump imposed sector-specific tariffs on goods imported from Canada, including steel and aluminum. However, he suspended his threat of widespread 25% tariffs. "We have some tough topics to discuss, and we'll be fine," Trump also said. "We're also going to discuss Ukraine, Russia, and the war, because Mark (Carney) wants this over, just as quickly as I do."