(AFP) – There’s currently “nothing normal” about dealing with the United States, Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney told parliament Tuesday, as he faced questions over his handling of relations with President Donald Trump. Carney has returned to Ottawa after delivering a widely acclaimed speech at last week’s World Economic Forum, which argued that the rules‑based international order led by Washington for decades was enduring a “rupture.” The speech — which also cautioned middle powers against hoping “compliance” would spare them from major power aggression — also earned rare cross‑party praise in Canada.
Opposition leader and Conservative Party head Pierre Poilievre, normally a relentless partisan brawler, has called it “well-crafted and eloquently delivered.” The leader of the separatist Bloc Quebecois, Yves‑Francois Blanchet, said it was “reassuring and promising.” But as parliament began a new legislative session on Tuesday, Blanchet took aim at Carney over his management of the US relationship. “A speech, in itself, doesn’t make money, it doesn’t create jobs and it doesn’t protect jobs,” the Bloc leader said.
Blanchet noted there has been no progress towards easing Trump’s sectoral tariffs battering key parts of Canada’s economy and asked Carney if negotiations with the United States are “normal and cordial.” “The world has changed. Washington has changed. There’s almost nothing normal in the United States now. That’s the truth,” the prime minister said in French. Carney told the House that he had spoken with Trump for about 30 minutes on Monday, including about trade.
Earlier Tuesday, Carney denied claims that he had walked back his Davos speech during the Trump call. The speech angered Trump, who told Carney to watch his words as “Canada lives because of the United States.” Speaking to Fox News on Monday, US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said: “I was in the Oval with the president today. He spoke to Prime Minister Carney, who was very aggressively walking back some of the very unfortunate remarks he made at Davos.” Carney told reporters in Ottawa on Tuesday that Bessent was incorrect. “To be absolutely clear, and I said this to the president, I meant what I said in Davos,” he said. Carney told reporters that Trump initiated the call, which also touched on issues ranging from Arctic security, Ukraine, and Venezuela.
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