Canada’s Prime Minister Mark Carney has issued a formal apology to U.S. President Donald Trump after a controversial Ontario-funded television advertisement triggered a sharp escalation in
trade tensions between the two countries.
The ad, which aired during the World Series, featured repurposed audio of former U.S. president Ronald Reagan warning that tariffs lead to “trade wars and economic disaster.” The clip, drawn from a 1987 radio address on U.S.–Japan trade measures, was reportedly edited out of sequence—something Trump later denounced as “misleading.”
Infuriated by the broadcast, Trump announced a 10 percent increase in tariffs on Canadian goods and abruptly suspended ongoing U.S.–Canada trade negotiations. Canada remains the only G7 nation without a trade agreement with Washington amid the current tariff standoff.
The commercial was commissioned by Ontario Premier Doug Ford as part of his campaign against U.S. tariffs, which he argues have damaged the province’s auto and steel sectors. Carney, who previously served as governor of the Bank of England, is said to have approved the ad, though he now maintains he cautioned Ford against airing it. The ad was pulled after Trump’s reaction.
Speaking at the Asia-Pacific summit in South Korea, Carney confirmed he apologized directly to Trump during a dinner hosted by South Korea’s president. “I did apologise to the president,” Carney said, while reiterating his earlier objections to the ad’s release.
Trump acknowledged the apology on Friday, though he made clear that trade talks would not resume. “I like him a lot, but what they did was wrong,” Trump said. “It was a false commercial.”
Ford, however, celebrated the uproar as proof the campaign had landed its punch. “You know why President Trump is so upset right now? Because it was effective,” he told reporters. “It woke up the whole country.” Photo by Policy Exchange, Wikimedia commons.
