Trump says Carney apologized over Ontario’s anti-tariff ad; trade talks remain off the table

U.S. President Donald Trump says Prime Minister Mark Carney has apologized for an Ontario government advertisement criticizing U.S. tariffs, a controversy that led Washington to suspend trade negotiations with Canada earlier this month.

Speaking to reporters aboard Air Force One, Trump said Carney offered an apology over what he called a “fraudulent” anti-tariff commercial. “He was very nice. He apologized for what they did with the commercial,” Trump said. However, when asked if trade talks with Canada would resume, the president replied, “No.”

The Ontario government, led by Premier Doug Ford, launched the $75-million ad campaign on October 14. The ad featured audio from a 1987 speech by former U.S. president Ronald Reagan warning that tariffs “hurt every American.” Ford said at the time the message would be aired broadly, including across Republican districts in the United States.

Ten days later, Trump announced that trade negotiations with Canada were being halted, after Ford confirmed the ad would run during the first two games of the World Series between the Toronto Blue Jays and the Los Angeles Dodgers. The U.S. president subsequently imposed an additional 10 per cent tariff on Canadian goods, accusing Ottawa of misrepresenting Reagan’s message.

“Canada was caught, red handed, putting up a fraudulent advertisement on Ronald Reagan’s speech on tariffs,” Trump wrote on his Truth Social account, adding that the U.S. would raise tariffs “by 10% over and above what they are paying now.”

The controversy marks a new strain in cross-border trade relations, which have already been under pressure as both countries debate the future of manufacturing and supply chain policy.