Prime Minister Mark Carney is pitching Canada as a stable and reliable partner for Southeast Asian countries as he attends the ASEAN summit in Malaysia, his longest foreign trip since taking office.
Carney arrived in Kuala Lumpur on Saturday after a 24-hour flight on a mission to expand trade and attract investment to Canada just days after U.S. President Donald Trump cut off trade talks with Ottawa.
Trump ended talks Thursday, citing an Ontario government ad that ran on U.S. television networks and featured footage of former president Ronald Reagan opposing tariffs as the reason.
Speaking to reporters, Trump dismissed the ad as “crooked” and “possibly AI,” claiming, “Canada lied. I mean, what they did was terrible. They made up a fake statement by president Reagan. Reagan was a big supporter of tariffs when needed.”
When asked if he would meet Carney during the ASEAN trip, Trump told reporters, “I don’t have any intention of it, no.”
Trade expert William Pellerin said he believes the dispute over the ad may not be the real reason talks broke down.
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“I think there is a lot of other things out of the United States administration that maybe this really isn’t about the ad, maybe it’s about the negotiations not going quite the way that the U.S. administration would like,” he said.
Pellerin added that tariffs are taking a toll on Canadian industries.
“The tariffs are really having a very devastating impact … we’re starting to see a tsunami of layoffs across a number of economic sectors,” he said, noting particular strain in the auto and steel industries.
Jamie Tronnes, an international affairs expert, said the dispute highlights the unpredictability of U.S. trade policy under Trump.
“Whenever it seems like we’re just about to make progress on a deal, something happens and the Americans walk away from the table,” she said.
“The problem for Canada is finding certainty. We need to be able to trust that when we go to the table, our deal isn’t going to get thrown under the bus at the last minute.”
Tronnes said the ongoing uncertainty around U.S. trade policy has made it difficult for allies to trust long-term deals. “We need to be able to trust that when we go to the table, our deal isn’t gonna get thrown under the bus at the last minute,” she said.
While tensions rise with Washington, Carney is using the ASEAN summit to build new relationships.
He will meet with Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim on Monday to discuss green energy and critical minerals, and will also visit Malaysia’s central bank, an oil and gas company and an aerospace facility.
Wayne Farmer, president of the Canada-ASEAN Business Council, said the region views Canada positively.
“I think ASEAN is very eager to do more with Canada, seeing us as a reliable, stable partner that they can plan to work with,” he said.
Despite the challenges, experts remain hopeful that Carney’s outreach in Asia could help offset tensions with Washington and support Canada’s goal to double exports to non-U.S. markets over the next decade.
“Trade diversification is absolutely important … there’s no question that diversifying away from the United States is a good strategy,” Pellerin said.
— With files from The Canadian Press
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