At a Special Dinner Hosted by President Lee
Trump: "No Resumption of Trade Negotiations"
Mark Carney, Prime Minister of Canada, recently stated that he personally apologized to President Donald Trump of the United States regarding Ontario's "anti-tariff advertisement," which had angered President Trump.
According to Bloomberg and other sources, Prime Minister Carney told reporters on November 1 in Gyeongju, South Korea, after attending the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit, "I apologized to (President Trump)." He added, "As Prime Minister, I am the one responsible for the relationship with the President of the United States," and continued, "These things happen. We accept both the good and the bad together."
Mark Carney, Prime Minister of Canada, is delivering a special keynote speech at the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) CEO Summit held at Gyeongju Arts Center, Gyeongbuk, on the 31st of last month. Photo by Kang Jinhyung
Prime Minister Carney also explained that he had seen the controversial advertisement before it aired and asked Doug Ford, Premier of Ontario, not to broadcast it. He emphasized, "This is not something I would have done."
Prime Minister Carney's apology appears to have taken place privately when he briefly met President Trump at a dinner hosted by President Lee Jaemyung on October 29. Regarding negotiations with the United States, Carney stated, "Trade negotiations will resume when the United States is ready."
Ontario released the controversial advertisement on October 16. The ad argued that tariffs would have a negative long-term impact on the lives of Americans. It stated that imposing tariffs on foreign products might seem like a patriotic act to protect American goods and jobs and could be effective for a short time, but in the long run, the market would suffer, companies would collapse, and millions could lose their jobs. Furthermore, the final part of the advertisement featured former U.S. President Ronald Reagan, making it appear as if he made such remarks. The voice of former President Reagan used in the ad was from a speech he delivered on April 25, 1987, in which he expressed his belief in supporting free trade.
President Trump took issue with the advertisement and announced the immediate suspension of all trade negotiations with Canada. He said, "The Ronald Reagan Foundation just announced that Canada deceptively used an ad showing former President Ronald Reagan speaking negatively about tariffs-a false advertisement," and claimed that Canada released such an ad to intervene and influence decisions by the U.S. Supreme Court and other courts. He also threatened to impose an additional 10% tariff on Canada.
Ultimately, Ontario halted the advertisement, but President Trump dismissed the possibility of resuming negotiations with Canada throughout his Asia tour for APEC and other events. Even on the flight back to the United States, President Trump mentioned to reporters that he had received an apology from Prime Minister Carney, but when asked about the possibility of resuming negotiations, he replied, "No." He further commented, "I like him (Prime Minister Carney) very much, but what they did was wrong."
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