‘Maybe they’ll shoot you’: Carney recalls Trump’s joke on Canada-US ties

Canada is targeting one trillion dollars in investments over the next five years to create a robust and independent economy

Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney has pitched Canada as a destination for global investment while seeking to reduce the country's economic dependence on the United States, even as he stressed that Washington will remain a key partner.Speaking at the Canada Investment Summit in Toronto on Tuesday, Carney said his government aims to catalyse C$1 trillion in investment in Canada over the next five years, targeting sectors including energy, transportation, data, defence and critical minerals.Carney said Canada was building greater economic resilience and expanding partnerships abroad as the global economic environment changes."We are catalysing one trillion dollars of investment to build a more resilient, competitive and sovereign economy," he said.Carney also recalled an anecdote from his visit to the White House last year, when US President Donald Trump gave him a key to the building and told him he could use it to enter."Maybe they'll shoot you," Carney recalled Trump saying, adding that the episode "sort of sums up the relationship that we have."Carney nevertheless described Trump as "a very good host" and thanked him for the gesture. "If we give you a key to Canada, we're not gonna shoot you here.

We're gonna welcome you," he said.On the broader relationship, Carney said Canada would remain an important US partner despite the current tensions."We will always be neighbours, and Canada will continue to be the US’s most important partner in many key areas," he said. He added that Canada wanted relations based on mutual respect for sovereignty and partnership.The summit brought together investors from nearly 30 countries, with participants managing more than C$100 trillion in assets, according to the Canadian government.

Ottawa said the summit generated nearly C$500 billion in new investment commitments.Carney also linked Canada's investment push to a major expansion of its defence capabilities. He said Canada is undertaking its biggest increase in defence spending since the Second World War, with a path to reach 4 percent of GDP in total defence spending by 2030.He added that the country's Defence Industrial Strategy is expected to catalyse C$500 billion in investment over the next decade, including in aerospace, shipbuilding, artificial intelligence, cyber, quantum technologies, robotics and autonomous systems.Carney's outreach comes as relations between Canada and the US remain strained by an escalating trade dispute. The US imposed 50 percent tariffs on some C$20 billion of Canadian goods last month, while Canada introduced retaliatory tariffs on US products in September. Washington has also announced restrictions on imports of Canadian alcohol, motorcycles and dairy products that are due to take effect on September 29.At the same time, Carney's government is seeking to diversify Canada's trade and investment relationships, including through closer economic and security ties with the European Union. Canada is also looking to attract investment into energy, mining, technology, infrastructure and defence as it seeks to strengthen its economy amid the ongoing dispute with Washington.