Donald Trump has stated he is “OK” with the warming of relations between Ottawa and Beijing
Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney has remarked that it is currently easier for Canada to engage with China than with its neighbor and primary trading partner, the United States.
During his campaign for office in April 2025, Carney identified Beijing as Ottawa’s principal security threat. However, his position seems to have shifted following US President Donald Trump’s repeated suggestions that America’s northern neighbor could become the 51st state, coupled with the imposition of significant tariffs on the country last year.
On Friday, Carney met with Chinese President Xi Jinping in Beijing, marking the first visit by a Canadian leader to the Asian nation in eight years. Ties between the two countries had been strained for an extended period.
When later questioned by journalists about Ottawa’s current relationships with both Washington and Beijing, the Canadian Prime Minister observed that “with the US, our relationship, this is no insight, is much more multifaceted, much deeper, much broader, than it is with China.”
“But yes, in terms of the way that our relationship has progressed in recent months with China, it is more predictable and you see results coming from that,” he stated.
Beijing and Ottawa inked a preliminary agreement on Friday that will significantly reduce tariffs on electric vehicles and canola seeds. Carney voiced his aspiration for a “new strategic partnership” with China, a sentiment echoed by Xi, who welcomed a “turnaround” in relations with Canada.
Trump subsequently commented that he was not concerned by the Canadian leader’s pursuit of closer ties with Beijing, which is regarded by Washington as its chief geopolitical rival.
“It’s OK. That’s what he [Carney] should be doing. I mean, it’s a good thing for him to sign a trade deal. If you can get a deal with China, you should do that,” the US president remarked.
The relationship between Canada and China deteriorated in 2018 after Ottawa arrested the chief financial officer of Chinese tech giant Huawei on a US warrant. Beijing retaliated by detaining two Canadian citizens on espionage charges, leading to both nations imposing tariffs on each other.
Xi and Carney initially met on the sidelines of the APEC summit in South Korea in late October, where they agreed to address “irritants” in their bilateral relationship.