On Friday, US President Donald Trump said his first conversation with Canada’s new Prime Minister, Mark Carney, was extremely productive. Carney mentioned that Trump respected Canada’s sovereignty both in private and public. However, he also noted that the relationship between the two countries has changed.

Trump has announced a trade war against Canada and even threatened to use economic pressure to turn Canada into the 51st U.S. state, which has angered many Canadians. However, he did not mention this in his social media posts or public statements later. "We had a very good conversation. Mark called me," Trump said. "We had a very very good talk. He's going through an election. We'll see what happens." Trump did not mistakenly call the prime minister a governor, as he had previously done with Justin Trudeau, Carney's predecessor.

In a social media post, the U.S. president stated that both sides share many common views. He also mentioned that they would meet right after Canada's upcoming election to discuss politics, business, and other important matters that would benefit both the United States and Canada. Trump announced that more tariffs are on the way. Meanwhile, Carney clarified that Trump never said he would remove tariffs on steel, aluminum, autos, and other products. "It is clear that the United States is no longer a reliable partner. It is probable now that by negotiating we will able to restore an element of trust but we cannot go back," Carney said.

Carney had previously stated that he would speak with Trump only if he respected Canada's sovereignty. Today, the president showed respect for Canada's sovereignty in both his private and public remarks, Carney said. He described their conversation as positive, friendly, and productive. Exactly what we want, Carney said. 

Carney has announced that he will start full negotiations for a new economic and security partnership right after the Canadian election on April 28. Carney recently took over from Trudeau as the leader of Canada and the head of the Liberal Party. He is now beginning a five-week election campaign. "What we need is a new agreement and a new partnership with the United States because there are too many changes, to many tariffs and too many threats coming at us," Carney said. "There is too much uncertainty in that relationship. We made progress but we will see." A former central banker became Canada’s new prime minister on March 14. It is unusual for a U.S. president and a Canadian prime minister to go so long without speaking after a new leader takes office. This week, Trump intensified his trade war by announcing a 25% tax on automobile imports. Cars are Canada’s second-largest export.

Earlier, Trump had already imposed a 25% tax on Canada’s steel and aluminum. Now, he is also threatening to apply heavy taxes on all Canadian products and goods from all of America’s trading partners starting April 2.

Carney stated that Trump's major plan to bring manufacturing back to the U.S. could result in higher prices and slower economic growth. However, he also mentioned that making a trade deal with the U.S.'s key partner would benefit both Americans and Canadians. “We are going to end up with a very good relationship with Canada,” Trump said. Canada has previously stated that it would respond with its own tariffs, and Carney reaffirmed this during his conversation with Trump.

On Friday, U.S. Vice President JD Vance took a tougher stance on Canada, pointing out that the country is planning to impose retaliatory tariffs. "As President Trump always says, they just don't have the cards," Vance said in Greenland. "There is no way that Canada can win a trade war with the United States," Vance argued that for many years, Canada has made American farmers and manufacturers follow rules that are unfair to them. "Trump renegotiated the free trade agreement with Canada and Mexico in his first term. At the time Trump called it the most modern, up-to-date, and balanced trade agreement in the history of our country, with the most advanced protections for workers ever developed." 

Trump and Carney agreed that Canada's Minister of International Trade, Dominic LeBlanc, and U.S. Secretary of Commerce, Howard Lutnick, will step up discussions to address the upcoming tariffs in the meantime. Earlier this year, the ruling Liberal Party seemed headed for a historic election loss. However, Trump's decision to start a trade war and challenge Canada's sovereignty has changed the situation. This crisis has sparked a wave of patriotism in Canada, with many people believing that Carney is the right leader for the country at this time. Trump has also admitted that his actions have shaken up Canadian politics.