Canada's Prime Minister Mark Carney has apologized to US President Donald Trump over an anti-tariff TV ad that prompted the American leader to impose additional tariffs on Canada and halt talks between the two nations.
Carney, who was attending a summit of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation forum in South Korea, revealed he had spoken privately with Trump at a dinner earlier this week and expressed his regret for the advertisement. According to Carney, Trump was "offended" by the ad's content, which featured former US President Ronald Reagan delivering an anti-tariff speech.
Carney clarified that he would not have commissioned such an ad if he had known it would spark such a reaction from Trump. However, despite his apology, the Canadian leader acknowledged that some of Trump's claims about the ad were unfounded.
The advertisement in question was produced by the province of Ontario and aired on major US television networks last month. It accurately reproduced Reagan's remarks but changed their order to convey an anti-tariff message.
Trump had accused the ad of being "fake" and claimed it was created to influence the outcome of a US Supreme Court case regarding tariffs imposed by his administration. The Ronald Reagan Presidential Foundation & Institute distanced itself from the ad, stating that Reagan's speech at Camp David in 1987 had been misrepresented.
The controversy surrounding the ad highlights the growing tensions between Canada and the US over trade policies. With talks on tariffs currently on hold, Carney's apology is seen as an attempt to ease some of the strain on relations between the two nations.
Carney, who was attending a summit of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation forum in South Korea, revealed he had spoken privately with Trump at a dinner earlier this week and expressed his regret for the advertisement. According to Carney, Trump was "offended" by the ad's content, which featured former US President Ronald Reagan delivering an anti-tariff speech.
Carney clarified that he would not have commissioned such an ad if he had known it would spark such a reaction from Trump. However, despite his apology, the Canadian leader acknowledged that some of Trump's claims about the ad were unfounded.
The advertisement in question was produced by the province of Ontario and aired on major US television networks last month. It accurately reproduced Reagan's remarks but changed their order to convey an anti-tariff message.
Trump had accused the ad of being "fake" and claimed it was created to influence the outcome of a US Supreme Court case regarding tariffs imposed by his administration. The Ronald Reagan Presidential Foundation & Institute distanced itself from the ad, stating that Reagan's speech at Camp David in 1987 had been misrepresented.
The controversy surrounding the ad highlights the growing tensions between Canada and the US over trade policies. With talks on tariffs currently on hold, Carney's apology is seen as an attempt to ease some of the strain on relations between the two nations.
... like, did he know trump would freak out over it? and honestly i feel bad 4 trump but at the same time cant we just let things go? 
the ad wasnt trying to be mean-spirited or anything, its just a speech by reagan with some words rearranged. and btw what's up with reagans speech being taken out of context like that? didnt the foundation & institute just say it was misrepresented? 
It just goes to show how sensitive these leaders can be about their own rhetoric. Carney's apology is definitely a step in the right direction, but it feels like they're only talking about the symptoms and not the root of the problem – which is the ongoing trade disputes between Canada and the US.
... seems like both sides are being super sensitive 
... canada's got nothing to be ashamed of, but i guess apologizing is always better than not doing anything 
... now the question is, what's next? 
will this be resolved or just another chapter in a long-standing feud? 
. I mean, who changes the order of Reagan's speech? 
. Guess Carney didn't do his research on Trump's fragile ego 
. Still, good move by Canada apologizing and trying to smooth things over 
. Now if they could just get those tariffs lifted, that'd be a win 
!
. Like, come on, it's just a rehashing of Reagan's old speech, dude! Carney's right, he wouldn't have commissioned something so lame if he knew Trump would freak out about it 
. Like, can't we just get along over some tariffs? It's not like one ad or even one president makes or breaks our relations 
. But I guess that's just the way it goes sometimes... 
. Don't get me wrong, I think it's a shame the apology was needed in the first place 
. Can't we just keep things civil? 
. Not sure about that ad tho... maybe they should've double-checked what Reagan said 