Canada's Carney says he apologised to Trump over Reagan ad

1/11/2025 16:10

Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney said on Saturday he had apologised to U.S. President Donald Trump over an anti-tariff political advertisement and had told Ontario Premier Doug Ford not to run it.



Carney, speaking to reporters after attending an Asia-Pacific summit in South Korea, said he had made the apology privately to Trump when they both attended a dinner hosted by South Korea's president on Wednesday.



"I did apologise to the president," Carney said, confirming comments by Trump made on Friday.



Carney also confirmed that he had reviewed the ad with Ford before it aired, but said he had opposed using it.



"I told Ford I did not want to go forward with the ad," he said.



The ad, commissioned by Ford, an outspoken Conservative politician who is sometimes compared to Trump, uses a snippet of Republican icon and former President Ronald Reagan saying that tariffs cause trade wars and economic disaster.



In response, Trump announced that he was increasing tariffs on goods from Canada, and Washington has also halted trade talks with Canada.