Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney on Thursday responded to U.S. President Donald Trump’s Davos remarks that “Canada lives because of the United States,” saying Canada “thrives because we are Canadian.”
Carney made the comments after returning from the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, where he delivered a speech that drew widespread attention. In Davos, Carney condemned coercion by great powers on smaller countries without mentioning Trump’s name.
Trump’s comments in Davos included a message to Carney: “Remember that, Mark, the next time you make your statements.” Carney, speaking after returning home, responded directly by referencing Trump’s remarks from Davos.
“Canada doesn’t live because of the United States. Canada thrives because we are Canadian,” Carney said, adding that Canada and the U.S. have built a partnership in the areas of economy, security and rich cultural exchange. He said “we are masters in our home, this is our own country, it’s our future, the choice is up to us.”
The dispute expanded after Trump revoked Carney’s invitation to join his Board of Peace. In a post on social media, Trump wrote that the Board of Peace was withdrawing its invitation to Carney regarding Canada’s joining what Trump described as “the most prestigious Board of Leaders ever assembled.”
Carney left Davos before Trump inaugurated the Board of Peace, which the report said was intended to lead efforts toward maintaining a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas. The AP report also said Trump has talked about making Canada the 51st state and posted an altered map that includes Canada, Greenland, Venezuela and Cuba as part of its territory.
At Davos, the AP reported, Trump said Canada gets many “freebies” from the U.S. and “should be grateful,” adding that Carney’s speech showed he “wasn’t so grateful.” The report said Trump also discussed “Golden Dome,” describing it as a multibillion-dollar missile defense system he said will be operational before his term ends in 2029.
In a speech ahead of a cabinet retreat in Quebec City, Carney linked Canada’s sovereignty to sticking with Canadian values. “We can show that another way is possible, that the arc of history isn’t destined to be warped toward authoritarianism and exclusion; it can still bend toward progress and justice,” he said, and added: “Canada must be a beacon — an example to a world at sea.”
Carney said rising populism and ethnic nationalism make it important to show that diversity is a strength, not a weakness, and told the audience: “There are billions of people who aspire to what we have built: a pluralistic society that works.” He also said Canada has shared prosperity and a democracy that chooses to protect the vulnerable against the powerful, saying: “It’s a great country for everyone. It is the greatest country in the world to be a regular person.”
The AP report said U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick complained about Carney’s Davos speech, and that Lutnick said on Bloomberg TV: “Give me a break. They have the second best deal in the world and all I got to do is listen to this guy whine and complain.” The report also noted that USMCA has shielded Canada from the worst impacts of Trump’s tariffs, but said the agreement is up for a mandatory review this year.
At the forum, California Gov. Gavin Newsom told attendees that multiple leaders in the U.S. sent him transcripts of Carney’s speech. Newsom said: “I respect what Carney did because he had courage of convictions. He stood up and I think we need to stand up in America and call this out with clarity,” and added: “We can lose our republic as we know it. Our country can become unrecognizable.”
Newsom said Carney came back from China with a deal to introduce low-cost, high-quality electric vehicles into Canada, and he framed the episode as evidence of what he described as recklessness in Trump’s foreign policy. “It’s a remarkable thing to break down 80-plus years of alliances,” Newsom said.