OTTAWA—Prime Minister Mark Carney will sit down for a one-on-one discussion with U.S. President Donald Trump first thing Monday before the Kananaskis G7 summit kicks off, a chance to make a breakthrough in talks to lift tariffs on Canada.
Emily Williams, a Carney spokesperson, said the two leaders will meet at 9 a.m. (11 a.m. ET) in Kananaskis, Monday.
Carney has a dual mission as he gets set to host this year’s meeting of the world’s leading democratic economies: to lead talks that end in G7 consensus not insults on a range of global issues from the economy and global security, and in his talks with Trump, to try to achieve a breakthrough on negotiations toward a new “economic and security agreement.”
Carney has said any deal must include the lifting of a range of so-called border-related tariffs, steel and aluminum tariffs, and auto tariffs that Trump has wielded against Canada.
However, federal sources who have spoken to the Star over the past several days in advance of the summit have downplayed the prospect of a deal emerging from any Carney-Trump bilateral meeting, all while acknowledging things can change quickly.
The U.S. president’s officials have said in recent days they are in talks with a number of the more than 180 countries Trump has put tariffs on, and hope to have deals to announce with about 15 of those in the next few weeks.
So several international leaders are seeking bilateral discussions with Trump on the sidelines of the summit.
Carney also has scheduled a Tuesday morning bilateral meeting with India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi, an official said. The invitation to Modi has drawn sharp criticism in Canada, however Carney justified including Modi at the G7 outreach session, saying as leader of the world’s most populous country, Modi’s presence at talks on economic challenges such as harnessing critical minerals, artificial intelligence and quantum computing was important. He said Modi’s government has agreed to cooperate with Canadian law enforcement agencies investigating foreign interference including the alleged assassination of a Canadian citizen at the direction of Indian government agents.
Carney is expected to have a total of 16 bilateral meetings outside the G7 sessions, said another Canadian official.
After holding a bilateral meeting with UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer in Ottawa earlier Sunday, Carney was scheduled to hold one-on-one meetings Australia Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, South Africa Presidet Cyril Ramaphosa, and German Chancellor Friedrich Merz after arriving in Alberta later Sunday.
