Carney calls trade talks with US ‘nasty’

International Carney calls trade talks with US ‘nasty’ Comments: by Mira Bhakta - 08/06/26 8:22 PM ET Comments: Link copied by Mira Bhakta - 08/06/26 8:22 PM ET Comments: Link copied

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Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney said Thursday that the trade negotiations with the United States had turned “nasty” following remarks made by President Donald Trump about Canada and its leadership.

“This is a tough negotiation,” Carney said in French. “You can say ‘nasty.’ But this is a question of Canadian jobs. It’s a question of the future of Canadian businesses.”

Carney’s comments were a response to Trump’s Thursday speech in Las Vegas that criticized the country.

“Canada’s nasty. They are. They’re nasty,” Trump said. “I love the people, but they’re nasty. Nasty leadership.”

Carney and Trump have traded blows since the prime minister took office in March 2025, with another issue being over wildfire smoke.

Last week, the Trump administration said it would hold Canada accountable for the smoke that came from Canada and spread to over a dozen states. According to the Canadian Wildland Fire Information System, there are hundreds of active fires with new ones still popping up.

Relations between the two North American countries intensified in July when Trump placed a 50 percent tariff on products ranging from “wine to hockey sticks to cement” for discriminatory measures taken by Canada against U.S. products.

If an agreement is not reached, the tariffs are expected to take effect Aug. 19.

“We are in the middle of a tariff war with the Americans,” Carney said, laughing at Trump’s comments about Canadian leadership.

The leaders spoke over the phone with Carney stating last month that they both agreed to intensify negotiations in the weeks following the 50 percent tariff’s announcement.

Canadian negotiators visited Washington this week to further negotiations with the Canadian-U.S. Trade Minister Dominic LeBlanc, who said in a post on social platform X meetings were “constructive and detailed.”

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