DAVOS, SWITZERLAND AND OTTAWA — Prime Minister Mark Carney left the World Economic Forum in Davos without meeting President Donald Trump Wednesday as the U.S. leader warned Canada should be more “grateful” for its southern neighbour.
“Canada gets a lot of freebies from us by the way,” Trump told a WEF audience, after mentioning the U.S. plan to build a missile defence system called the Golden Dome. “They should be grateful also but they’re not.”
Trump’s remarks come one day after Carney delivered a striking speech in front of the forum, declaring the old rules-based order dead and called on middle powers to call out bullies and hegemons, without naming specific countries.
Trump said he watched Carney’s address. “He wasn’t so grateful,” said Trump. “They should be grateful to us, Canada — but they’re not. Canada lives because of the United States. Remember that Mark, the next time you make your statements.”
Carney left Davos around 2 p.m. local time, almost exactly when the U.S. president arrived to deliver an over hour-long speech at the glitzy international summit. Carney’s office confirmed that the prime minister did not meet or talk with Trump Wednesday.
Carney was not the only leader to avoid Trump at the summit. European Union President Ursula von der Leyen also delivered a speech to the WEF on Tuesday and jetted out of Davos without seeing the U.S. president.
European allies have been on edge over Trump’s ambitions to take over Greenland, an autonomous territory which belongs to the Kingdom of Denmark, a member of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO).
During his speech, Trump said “I won’t use force” but reiterated that the U.S. will have Greenland.
“This enormous unsecured island is actually part of North America,” said Trump, while he called for negotiations with Denmark.
The president has threatened 10 per cent tariff starting in February on goods from Denmark, Norway, Sweden, France, Germany, the United Kingdom, the Netherlands and Finland over the Greenland issue. Countries in the European Union are mulling potential countermeasures against the U.S.
Carney has said he strongly opposes tariffs over Greenland and the future of the territory should be determined by the people of Denmark and Greenland. During the summit, Carney also acknowledged the growing importance of arctic security among NATO partners and said Russia does pose a “prospective” threat to that region in the world.
While in Davos, Carney met with multiple world and business leaders over two days, including French President Emmanuel Macron, Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson and Apple CEO Tim Cook.
Carney wraps up an eight-day international trip that included a visit to China, the first trip by a Canadian prime minister in over eight years. Viewed as a reset in relations between China and Canada, the visit also included a “landmark agreement” that will allow market access of Chinese electric vehicles into Canada in exchange for a lowering of Chinese tariffs on canola exports.
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