Prime Minister Mark Carney said Sunday that Canada must build stronger economic ties with other countries as its relationship with the United States shifts, arguing that the close integration that long defined the two neighbors has become a weakness. In a 10-minute video, Carney said Canada can no longer depend on one foreign partner and must prepare for a world he described as more dangerous and divided.
Carney said the United States has fundamentally changed its approach to trade and raised tariffs to levels last seen during the Great Depression. He said many of Canada’s former strengths, built on close ties to America, have become weaknesses that must be corrected, and added: “We have to take care of ourselves because we can’t rely on one foreign partner.”
The message lands at a sensitive moment for the new government. Carney’s Liberal Party secured a parliamentary majority in special elections earlier this month, giving him more room to shape policy after becoming prime minister in 2025, and a review of the free trade pact among the United States, Canada and Mexico is scheduled for July.
The remarks also reflect how far the mood has shifted since Trump’s comments that Canada should become a U.S. state rattled Canadians and helped push Carney to campaign on a firmer response to what many saw as unwarranted hostility from Washington. Tensions have eased between Trump and Carney, and some tariffs have been rolled back, but the prime minister has kept pressing for more resilience at home and closer economic links abroad, including with countries such as China.
Carney drove the point home in the video by holding up a toy soldier depicting General Isaac Brock, the British military commander who fought against U.S. forces during the War of 1812 invasion of what is now Canada. It was a small prop, but a pointed one: a reminder that the trade and political pressure coming from the south is not something Ottawa can control, and not something Carney believes Canada should wait to pass.
For Carney, the next test is whether he can turn that warning into policy before July, when the free trade review could force the question of how much of Canada’s future should still be tied to the United States.