Canada is ready to pick up trade talks when US is ready

Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney said that his country is ready to resume trade talks with the United States “when the Americans are ready.”

His statements come after US President Donald Trump announced the immediate cessation of all trade negotiations with Canada due to an announcement criticizing the customs duties he imposed on the country.

The ad, sponsored by the Canadian province of Ontario, quotes former US President Ronald Reagan, a Republican and symbol of American conservatism, saying that tariffs “harm every American.”

Trump wrote on social media that the announcement was “false” and “horrible,” adding that the trade talks were “hereby terminated.”

The Trump administration has imposed a 35% tax on many Canadian imports, as well as individual tariffs targeting specific industries such as automobiles and steel. Ontario has been particularly hard hit by these issues.

Trump allowed exemptions for goods that fall under the free trade agreement with Mexico and Canada, which was negotiated during his first term.

But since his election earlier this year, Carney in Canada has been trying to reach a deal that would ease tariffs. Three-quarters of Canadian exports are sold to the United States, making its economy particularly vulnerable.

Those efforts have been complicated by Ontario Premier Doug Ford, a vocal critic of taxes on U.S. companies that buy Canadian products.

In the minute-long ad released last week, Reagan’s voice can be heard narrating over images that include the New York Stock Exchange and cranes decorated with the American and Canadian flags.

Video clip from A 1987 National Radio Speech By Reagan who focused on foreign trade.

“When someone says, ‘Let’s put tariffs on foreign imports,’ it’s as if they’re doing the patriotic thing by protecting American products and jobs,” Reagan says in the ad. “And sometimes, for a little while, it works — but only for a little while.”

“In the long run, such trade barriers will hurt every American, worker and consumer.

He added: “High tariffs inevitably lead to retaliation by foreign countries and spark fierce trade wars… Markets shrink and collapse, companies and industries close their doors, and millions of people lose their jobs.”

The Ronald Reagan Foundation – charged with preserving his legacy – issued a statement on Thursday saying the ad used a “selective” audio and video recording of the former president’s remarks.

She said the ad “misrepresents” the former president’s address, without specifying why, and accused the Ontario government of not obtaining permission to use and edit the remarks.

The foundation said it was “reviewing its legal options.”

Trump referred to this statement and said that the video was intended to “interfere” with the US Supreme Court’s decision expected in November. Whether the comprehensive tariffs imposed by Washington on the products of many countries are legal.

The court’s decision represents the biggest test of Trump’s presidential power and his distinctive economic policy, which could force the United States to return billions collected from tariffs.

Prime Minister Carney did not address the announcement in his remarks early Friday. He said Canada has made “a lot of progress” in trade talks with the United States, but is also focused on “developing new partnerships” with other countries, including Asia.

He was speaking as he left Canada to attend the ASEAN Summit in Kuala Lumpur. Trump is also expected to attend.

Meanwhile, Ford posted Reagan’s full speech on X, writing: “Canada and the United States are friends, neighbors and allies. President Ronald Reagan knew we were stronger together.”

While it includes only excerpts of the original five-minute speech, it does not alter Reagan’s words.

The order in which comments are made has changed. The ad’s penultimate sentence is taken from roughly the beginning of his speech, and the phrase that appears about halfway through the ad is similarly taken from an earlier point in the title.

The original title—titled An Address to the Nation on Free and Fair Trade—regarded a specific set of tariffs imposed by the then-Reagan administration on certain Japanese goods.

Reagan seeks to use the speech to explain why he introduced tariffs in this “special case” despite his belief that “imposing such tariffs or trade barriers and restrictions of any kind are steps I would hate to take.”

He makes it clear that he wants to lift them as soon as possible “in order to promote the prosperity and economic development that only free trade can bring” – a position he emphasized throughout his speech.

Trump later doubled down on his criticism of the ad, writing that “Ronald Reagan did not like tariffs, when in fact he liked tariffs for our country and its national security.”

Speaking to White House reporters on Friday morning, US National Economic Council Director Kevin Hassett said “frustration has built up over time” toward Canada.

“The situation for the Canadians was very difficult,” he said.

A few minutes earlier, he told Fox Business: “Sometimes when you’re frustrated, a time limit is the right call.”

“Maybe it’s time to take a break.”

The ad ran as part of a C$75m (£40m; $54m) campaign on major TV channels in the US.

In a The post accompanying the ad Last week, Ford wrote: “We will never stop making arguments against US tariffs on Canada.”

The Chinese Embassy in Washington also used a similar clip of Reagan In a post on X To question the global tariffs imposed by Trump earlier this year.

Ontario is Canada’s most populous province and largest provincial economy, and has suffered the most as a result of US tariffs.

Ford responded to Trump’s previous threat to impose tariffs on Canada by saying he was ready to do so Cut off the power To the United States.

He also described Washington’s trade policies against Canada as having drawn a knife and “Grab it in usHe called on American lawmakers to put pressure on Trump.

Trump’s sector-specific tariffs on Canadian goods include a 50% tax on metals and a 25% tax on cars.

The White House’s global tariffs — particularly on steel, aluminum and autos — have hit Canada hard, leading to job losses and pressure on businesses.

This is the second time that Trump has announced that he will stop trade talks with Canada, after Ottawa announced that it would do so Imposing a digital services tax on US technology companies Earlier this year.

When Canada repealed the tax, the White House said Carney did so “I caved” to Trump’s pressure.