"He Was Offended": Mark Carney Apologises To Trump Over Anti-Tariff Ronald Reagan Ad

The one-minute ad was launched by Ontario's premier Doug Ford and had clips of Reagan's 1987 address saying tariffs caused trade wars and economic disaster. However, Mark Carney had said that after reviewing the ad with Ford, he did not want it to air.

01 Nov 2025, 12:32 · NDTV

The Canadian Prime Minister, Mark Carney, apologised to US President Donald Trump over an ad.

"I did apologise to the president. The President was offended," Carney told the press in Gyeongju. He also added that the trade talks will restart when the US is "ready".

About The Ad

The commercial was based on anti-tariff remarks made by former American President Ronald Reagan to criticise trade barriers.

The one-minute ad was launched by Ontario's premier Doug Ford and had clips of Reagan's 1987 address saying tariffs caused trade wars and economic disaster. However, Carney had said that after reviewing the ad with Ford, he did not want it to air.

"I told Ford I did not want to go forward with the ad," he said.

"High tariffs inevitably lead to retaliation by foreign countries, and the triggering of fierce trade wars. Then the worst happens, markets shrink and collapse, businesses and industries shut down, and millions of people lose their jobs," Reagan said in the address. The 40th president also added, "The way to prosperity for all nations is rejecting protectionist legislation and promoting fair and free competition".

What Trump Said

Carney confirmed the apology after Trump told reporters on Air Force One on Friday, "I have a very good relationship [with Carney]. I like him a lot, but what they did was wrong. He was very nice. He apologised for what they did with the commercial."

"It was a false commercial. It was the exact opposite - Ronald Reagan loved tariffs," Trump told reporters.

The Republican leader branded the ad "crooked" and said he would be suspending trade talks with Canada.

On the other side, Ford agreed to take down the campaign but only after it gets aired during the World Series baseball games.

Trump wrote on Truth Social that he wanted the advertisement to be "taken down immediately".

"But they let it run last night during the World Series, knowing that it was a fraud," he said.

Owing to the ad, Trump slapped an additional 10 per cent tariff on Canada. "Because of their serious misrepresentation of the facts, and hostile act, I am increasing the Tariff on Canada by 10 per cent over and above what they are paying now," he said.

Show full article

Track Latest News Live on NDTV.com and get news updates from India and around the world