At a press briefing on Thursday, Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney was asked if the United States was still an ally.
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NewsTranscript
00:00You said previously that the relationship that Canada had with the United States is now over.
00:05Is the U.S. still our ally?
00:08The U.S. is absolutely our ally.
00:11It's our ally in security and defense partnerships.
00:14It's our most important security ally, for example.
00:17It's still, even with these tariffs, the largest trading partners.
00:20The point I made last week, the point I made again today,
00:25is part of what our relationship has been based on,
00:28though has been a degree of integration between our economies,
00:32our trade becoming closer and closer together.
00:35That is over.
00:36I mean, we saw that that was ending a while ago.
00:39It's now emphatic.
00:40I think the world is learning that that is over.
00:43That creates real challenges for us.
00:46We're not sugarcoating it.
00:47We're absolutely clear about that.
00:49It also, though, creates an enormous opportunity for a country like Canada,
00:54which has virtually everything that the world wants,
00:57has a lot of things that the U.S. wants,
00:59and they're going to find out how much they want it with these tariffs.
01:02So we have virtually everything the world wants.
01:04And when I talk to leaders in Europe, when I talk to the Mexican president,
01:11they want to work with us.
01:12They want to cooperate with us.
01:13And I'll say one other thing, if I may, and then end,
01:16which is one of the things, and I'll go back to Team Canada,
01:21Premier Smith, Premier Mo, Monsieur le Premier, Ministre Legault,
01:25all of those premiers, in the very short term,
01:27either have just gone on major trade initiatives to Europe, in some cases,
01:32or about to go to trade missions in Asia.
01:36That's the Team Canada approach.
01:38That's the coordinated approach that we need.
01:40And I think Canadians, again, not sugarcoating the challenges,
01:43but can be very encouraged about the sense of purpose and action
01:47at different levels to move forward.
01:50The allies or...
01:55Yes, the United States, of course.
01:58The United States is still an ally of Canada.
02:01The United States is our most important ally in terms of security
02:10and defence, for example.
02:12But the world is changing.
02:13Okay.
02:14Ashley, please.
02:15Ashley Burke, CBC News.
02:17Good morning.
02:18You have talked about the old relationship when it comes to the tight military
02:22and security cooperation being over.
02:24So what exactly are you picturing, and what does that mean for NORAD?
02:28Well, first and foremost, what I've emphasised has been the commercial relationship,
02:35the trading relationship, and the direction of that relationship.
02:39It was only a few months ago that many responded to the initial US tariffs
02:45and discussions of tariffs by saying, this was not me, to be clear,
02:49but some prominent Canadian said, well, we should have a customs union
02:52with the United States.
02:53We should become closer to the United States.
02:56It's clear that that strategy has tremendous risks, would be misguided, in my view,
03:01and misguided and create tremendous risks.
03:04There may be certain sectors where that's the case, but as an overall approach,
03:08that view, that relationship is over.
03:11As I just said, our military and security relationship with the United States
03:17is still our most important one, without question.
03:20So I didn't declare the end of that, and I'm not declaring the end of that.
03:25What I have emphasised, and my government has taken action on,
03:29is diversifying and reinforcing other aspects of our security partnership.
03:33So we signed a major defence agreement with Australia over the horizon radar.
03:41My trips to Paris and London were partly about deepening our security partnerships
03:47with those countries.
03:49We're looking on diversification in terms of maritime procurement
03:52and other aspects of procurement.
03:54We're reviewing the F-35 fighters to make sure that that's the right approach
04:00for the country going forward, given the other considerations.
04:03Last question.
04:05You've talked about how long and hard the road could be for Canadians
04:08if Mr. Trump keeps these tariffs in place.
04:10How long and hard, and is Canada headed towards a recession?
04:13Well, look, I think it starts with what the implications of these tariffs,
04:19yesterday's tariffs, which affect virtually every economy in the world,
04:24means for the global economy and the U.S. economy,
04:28and the U.S. economy which is slowing,
04:31the U.S. economy where inflation is starting to pick up,
04:35where financial conditions are going to start to tighten,
04:38and the U.S. economy which has a possibility of tipping into recession themselves.
04:44So it starts there.
04:47It is usually the case that when the United States has a recession
04:52that it's very difficult for Canada to avoid something similar.
04:56There's been exceptions to that.
04:58In the financial crisis of 2008-9, when I was governor, we avoided a recession.
05:04We need to take action now for short-term support
05:10and reimagine our economy for the medium term.
05:14And I won't go through the list of things.
05:16You personally have had to hear them a few times,
05:19but it is about that one Canadian economy,
05:21and it's about building everything from homes to new energy infrastructure
05:25to new ports and trade infrastructure.
05:28By doing that, and by doing that in a way that is as coordinated
05:31and impactful and immediate as possible,
05:34we create a real possibility, in fact, probability.
05:38It's not just right for the medium term, but it's right for the short term.
05:41And that, in many ways, is what's at stake right now.
05:44Yes, we have to respond to the U.S., and we are responding appropriately.
05:47Yes, absolutely, first and foremost, protect our workers.
05:52But we need to do much more than that, which is to build this economy.
05:56And in doing that, we can avoid the slowdown that is coming.
06:00Well, we can do better than the United States.
06:03That's my point.
06:04We can do better than the United States.
06:06Exactly where that comes out depends on how much damage they do to their economy.
06:10Thanks, everyone.
06:11In French, on the last aspect.
06:14Yes, of course.
06:17As far as the growth rate on a global scale is concerned,
06:21what is certain is that the American tariffs will at least slow down the global economy,
06:31including and above all the American economy.
06:35At this time, the American economy is slowing down and inflation in the United States is increasing.
06:41So it's a very difficult combination to have.
06:44And it's before we have big tariffs.
06:48Under these circumstances, there is normally a strong slowdown in the Canadian economy.
06:59But we avoided it in 2008 when I was Governor of the Bank of Canada.
07:06And we can reduce the negative impact, the negative downfalls of the American economy here in Canada
07:19with the economic force, including all the efforts to build a strong economy.
07:28Okay, thanks, everyone.