The minister responsible for the relationship between Canada and the United States said he’s optimistic solutions can be found in the current trade dispute.
Dominic LeBlanc spoke to reporters after Tuesday’s meeting between Prime Minister Mark Carney and President Donald Trump.
LeBlanc said the conversation between the two leaders was more detailed than previous discussions.
He said it concluded with both Carney and Trump instructing their respective cabinets to continue the conversation and get deals done quickly that should bring greater certainty in certain sectors, particularly steel, aluminum and energy.
“Those sectors are among the ones that have faced the most significant challenges from the tariffs,” LeBlanc said. “In the conversation today, we talked about ways to quickly arrive at a deal that will bring, we hope, a better circumstance to both countries in these sectors of significant importance.”
LeBlanc said he thought Trump acknowledged the work both countries have done to advance their security and economic relationship.
“We have probably the two most integrated economies in the world in terms of trading partners,” he said. “It’s a different circumstance than doing a deal with country that’s an ocean away. The president acknowledged that.”
LeBlanc said he was more optimistic following the White House meeting than he was when the delegation arrived in Washington Monday.
“But (I) recognize that we still have some work to do,” he said. “But we have an engaged, active, respectful partner in the United States, and I’m optimistic that we can get that work done as quickly as possible, recognizing the urgency.”
