The issue of whether the prime minister and his chief of staff were aware of and endorsed an Ontario government anti-tariff ad that provoked U.S. President Donald Trump followed Mark Carney to Singapore on Tuesday. The Prime Minister’s Office declined to provide any further comments on the television ad, which resulted in the breakdown of sectoral trade talks with the United States last week.
A senior federal official, speaking on background, continued to attribute the responsibility for the advertising campaign to the government of Ontario Premier Doug Ford, despite the prime minister’s assertion that Ottawa is leading the negotiations. The official stated, “This decision was made by the government of Ontario, and the federal government was not engaged in the creation or dissemination of this ad.”
In response, Ford defended the decision on Monday, affirming that the prime minister and his senior advisors had reviewed the ad before it was aired. Ford emphasized that both the prime minister and his chief of staff had seen the ad and approved its release.
Ford asserted that the television commercial successfully achieved its goal of raising awareness among Americans about the impact of tariffs. He stated, “Mission accomplished. It was executed, and it has sparked discussions in the U.S. that were not happening before.”
When asked about Trump’s cancellation of trade talks during the ASEAN summit in Kuala Lumpur, Carney suggested accepting the president’s stated reasons for the action. Carney reiterated that the Canadian federal government holds the authority in managing relations with the United States.
Trump, on the other hand, placed blame on Carney, indicating that he had no intention of meeting the prime minister at the upcoming APEC summit in South Korea. Trump alleged that everyone, including the provincial and federal levels, was aware of the ad and its contents.
Furthermore, Trump accused Canada of meddling in U.S. legal matters, asserting that the ad campaign was timed to influence an upcoming U.S. Supreme Court case related to his tariff authority. He mentioned plans to increase tariffs on Canadian imports by an additional 10%, without specifying a date for implementation.
Trump claimed that Canada had apologized for the ad campaign, stating, “They shouldn’t have done it. And they’ve apologized.” Carney clarified that he had not directly communicated with Trump since the trade talks faltered, leaving uncertainty about any text exchanges between them.
Carney refrained from media interactions on Tuesday, dedicating the day to touring the Port of Singapore, a key global maritime trade hub. Additionally, the prime minister engaged in discussions with the CEO of the Government of Singapore Investment Corporation, a sovereign wealth fund managing over $1.1 trillion US in assets worldwide.
