Prime Minister Mark Carney took part in a fireside chat Monday with American think tank Council on Foreign Relations on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly in New York.Sean Kilpatrick/The Canadian Press
Prime Minister Mark Carney says Canada wants to lessen dependence on the United States rather than having to monitor Donald Trump’s TruthSocial.com or other social media to determine what new U.S. policy might affect this country.
In comments to the Council on Foreign Relations, a U.S. think tank, Mr. Carney talked about his efforts to build more economic opportunities for Canada outside of the increasingly protectionist United States.
“Canadians understand the need to, as we put it, to be masters in our own house,” Mr. Carney told the council in an interview Monday.
“The country does not want to wake up and look on, with due respect, on Truth Social or X.com to see what what the latest change is in U.S. policy – but wants to get on with what we can control, and that’s a big part of the government strategy.”
Recognition of Palestinian state puts Canada at odds with U.S.
Mr. Carney is in New York this week where he will speak at a conference on a two-state solution for the Israel-Palestinian conflict. Canada recognized the state of Palestine Sunday as part of a push by Western countries to put pressure on Israel as it wages war in Gaza, and to revive the chances of a two-state solution to the conflict.
The decision by Mr. Carney’s government puts it at odds with Canada’s most important ally, the United States, and represents a significant shift in Canadian foreign policy, which previously held that such recognition would come only after a negotiated peace agreement between Israeli and Palestinian leaders.
World leaders are gathering at one of the most turbulent and divisive moments in the 80-year history of the United Nations.
The Associated Press
He told the council Monday that the world is undergoing a dramatic shift driven in part by changing U.S. policy which is reducing the effectiveness of international institutions upon which Canada has relied including the United Nations and World Trade Organization.
This forces Canada to be more self reliant, Mr. Carney said.
“We prospered under the old system,” he said. “We would like the old system back.”
“The economic strategy of the United States has clearly changed from the support for the multilateral system to a more transactional and managed bilateral trade and investment approach.”
The UN General Assembly kicks off this week. Here’s what to watch out for
He pitched the audience on Canada’s energy riches.
“We are an energy superpower that is going to become increasingly evident. Eighty-five per cent of our energy is clean, one of the world’s largest LNG exporters, one of the largest reserves of oil and gas – we measure additions to our grid in 10 gigawatt chunks.”
More to come