Ottawa: As world leaders congratulated Mark Carney on his election as the Prime Minister of Canada, US President Donald Trump said that the Liberal Party leader is interested in striking a trade deal and plans to visit the White House within the next week. According to Trump, Carney called him on Tuesday following his election win, during which the former offered his congratulations.
"He called me up yesterday - he said let's make a deal," Trump told reporters at the White House after a Cabinet meeting. He described Carney as being very pleasant during the conversation and said the Canadian leader would be coming to Washington soon.
According to a readout issued by Carney's office, the PM spoke with Trump, a day after the victory in parliamentary elections, and the two leaders agreed on the importance of Canada and the United States working together as independent, sovereign nations. Carney mentioned Canada-US relations several times during his victory speech, reminding Canadians of the challenges posed by ongoing hostilities with the US.
After securing victory at the polls, Carney declared that Canada deserves respect from its southern neighbor and made it clear that any trade or security negotiations with President Trump would happen strictly "on our terms."
Speaking to the BBC, Carney, a leading economist and former Governor of the Bank of Canada who was chosen by Canada's Liberal Party as former PM Justin Trudeau's replacement, said he would only travel to Washington if meaningful talks were on the table and if Canada’s sovereignty were fully acknowledged.
