Federal Liberal leadership candidate Mark Carney is calling U.S. President Donald Trump's threats of a trade war a 'wakeup call for Canadians.'
Carney, who was in Windsor on Wednesday at the base of the Gordie Howe International Bridge, says the world has changed, and we too must change to realize the full promise of this great country.
Carney says the world has changed, and we must change to realize the full promise of our great country.
"The world is being fundamentally transformed; the old rules-based order is finished, but a new one, a new system, has not yet emerged. Canada should now work with like-minded nations to create a trading system that is consistent with our values and that builds our prosperity," he says.
U.S. President Trump delayed his plan to slap 25 per cent tariffs on Canadian goods entering the U.S. after Canada outlined its latest border plan, including new measures such as creating the role of a fentanyl czar, putting a pause on the tariff measures until March.
Carney says we can and must change our major trading partners.
"Canada and the United States have the most important commercial relationship in the world, and long may it remain so," he says.
"Now that U.S. priorities are shifting, we need to change our priorities that work best for Canada."
Carney says we can't put our eggs in one basket when it comes to trade.
"While we should remain closely integrated with the United States and the auto sector, in energy and security, in the new areas that will drive jobs and competitiveness in this century, we must diversify our trading relationships," he says.
During the course of the threat of a trade war, President Trump has said multiple times that Canada should become America's 51st state, saying there wouldn't be a need for tariffs if that happened.
Carney says whether we can influence President Trump is debatable, but I think we can if we listen to what Americans want and respond in ways that are best for Canada.
"We need to be crystal clear about our bottom lines. This proud country will never be part of the United States in any shape or form," he says.
During Wednesday's news conference, Carney also announced that he would reach Canada's NATO defence spending target by the end of the decade—two years ahead of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's schedule.
Ottawa formally committed in 2023 to spending the equivalent of two per cent of its GDP on national defence but has failed to come close to that target and doesn't plan to meet it until 2032.
Most NATO allies have met the spending target already, and U.S. lawmakers are pressing Ottawa to step up.
Carney also promised a tax cut for the middle class.
The Liberal Party of Canada will select its next leader in a vote on March 9.
Along with Carney, Liberal MPs Chrystia Freeland and Karina Gould, and former MPs Frank Baylis and Ruby Dhalla are seeking the federal party leadership.