As negotiations between Canada and the U.S. intensify over a new economic and security deal, Canada’s Ambassador to the U.S. Kirsten Hillman is cautioning the federal government will have to take relations with its southern neighbour “one step at a time.”
Prime Minister Mark Carney is hosting the G7 leaders — along with leaders from several other countries — for two days of discussions in Kananaskis, Alta. for the group’s annual summit.
Ahead of what turned out to be a forty-minute bilateral meeting between Carney and U.S. President Donald Trump on Monday, the latter told reporters he expected the primary focus of the meeting to be trade between the two countries.
“I’m sure we can work something out,” Trump said, before adding that he and Carney have “different concepts” when it comes to trade, and calling himself “a tariff person.”
Trump also said he thinks a bilateral deal is “achievable” within days or weeks. A readout from the Prime Minister’s Office following the meeting states the leaders have set a deadline to reach a deal within the coming 30 days.
In an interview with CTV Power Play host Vassy Kapelos on Monday, Hillman said she agrees a deal is achievable, but added it’s “not done until it’s done.”
“You’re asking me a speculative question about the future, and I can’t say definitively what President Trump is going to do in the future,” Hillman said, when asked whether she thinks the U.S. will stand by any agreement that may be reached between the two countries.
“Our responsibility is to deal with the situation in front of us,” she added. “And the situation in front of us are tariffs that are punishing some of our industries and causing them great difficulty.”
Trump launched his trade war in February, implementing a slate of tariffs on Canadian goods, and contravening the existing trade deal between the two countries. He has also frequently suggested Canada should become the 51st state.
Hillman said Canada has been “clear” throughout negotiations that its objective is to get as close to free trade as possible, but that without a deal, it’s impossible to know what such a deal might include or stipulate.
Hillman — who was in the room during the bilateral meeting between Trump and Carney earlier on Monday — also said Canada needs to “figure out” how to get the president to scrap his tariffs.
“Can we do it? I think we can,” she said. “I think we can get to a better place. Will it last for the rest of this administration? I most certainly hope so. And I think that’s obviously our objective overall.”
“But again, President Trump is the leader that he is,” she added. “He takes very hard lines on things that matter to him. And we’re just going to have to take it one step at a time.”
You can watch Hillman’s full interview on CTV Power Play with Vassy Kapelos in the video player at the top of this article.
With files form CTV News’ Brennan MacDonald
