Canadian PM Calls for New Partnership with US to 'Help Make America Great Again'

Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney delivered a speech in New York on April 24, calling for a new partnership with the United States to 'help make America great again.' He emphasized the need for a 'true partnership' to reshape cooperation in specific areas under global competitive pressure.

The speech came ahead of a mandatory review of the US-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) in July. Carney stated that Canada is diversifying away from the U.S. market and has signed trade agreements with dozens of countries worldwide.

'Our core objective in these partnerships is to strengthen strategic autonomy. Because we live in a world where integration has been weaponized. Because a country that cannot feed itself, supply its energy, or defend itself is not truly sovereign,' Carney said.

Actions by U.S. President Donald Trump—including launching a trade war and suggesting Canada become the 51st U.S. state—have angered Canadians and created a political environment that helped Carney win the prime ministerial election on a promise to confront Trump. The Canadian prime minister now serves as a spokesperson for a movement of countries seeking to align and respond to the U.S. under Trump.

Carney has set a goal of doubling Canada's non-U.S. exports over the next decade, arguing that U.S. tariffs are freezing investment. 'A strong Canada will help make America great again. There are countless examples of how we should work together and compete with the world. For those goals, we have made specific, practical proposals to the U.S. administration,' he said.

Canada has been shielded from the harshest effects of Trump's tariffs by the USMCA, but the agreement is due for reassessment, and key sectors such as aluminum and steel have been heavily affected. Carney noted that Canadian aluminum exports to the U.S. are equivalent to the energy of 10 Hoover Dams, and replacing Canada would be impractical. 'Given America's growing energy needs, does it make sense to build the necessary gigawatts to replace Canada?' he asked.

On automobiles, Carney said Canada is the largest customer of the U.S., and 'an integrated North American market for manufacturing is the best and most sustainable way to face fierce global competition.' He also mentioned critical minerals such as potash, nickel, copper, and uranium, asserting that Canada can be the most reliable supplier for U.S. needs in cheap food, defense, and energy for AI.

'In a time of global energy crisis, Canada provides the U.S. with reliable energy and critical minerals that drive American growth: 99% of U.S. natural gas imports, 85% of electricity imports, and 60% of crude oil imports,' Carney said. He emphasized that Canada is the largest customer of the U.S., buying more goods than China, Japan, and Germany combined.

Following Trump's threats to annex Canada as the 51st state, Carney previously described the relationship with the U.S. as 'weaknesses we must fix' and argued that the U.S. has fundamentally changed its approach to trade, raising tariffs to their highest levels since the Great Depression. In a speech at the World Economic Forum in Davos in January, he had referred to 'American hegemony' and warned that deep integration with major powers creates 'vulnerabilities to exploit.'