Explosive Trump-Carney White House showdown could be another 'Zelensky moment'

Donald Trump and Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney are set to lock horns later today in a potentially explosive showdown. The meeting is the first since the US president said its neighbour should become America’s 51st state.

Recently-elected Carney, 60, retaliated by saying the US was a country “we can no longer trust”. The face-to-face has led some to predict a repeat of February’s meeting when Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky walked into a “trap” and was humiliated in front of the world before being thrown out of the White House.

After former Bank of England boss Carney was elected leader of the Liberal Party, he launched an eviscerating verbal assault on Trump, effectively declaring economic war on America, saying a “country we can no longer trust” is hellbent on destroying their way of life. And taking aim squarely at the president, he boasted: "Americans should make no mistake. In trade, as in hockey, Canada will win."

He added: “The Americans want our resources, our water, our land, our country. Think about it. If they succeed they would destroy our way of life. In America health care is big business. In Canada it is a right. America is a melting pot. Canada is mosaic. America is not Canada. And Canada will never, ever be a part of America in any way, shape or form."

Earlier this year the US slapped 25% tariffs on Canadian goods, steel and aluminium products, and 10% on energy imports in a move that was met with retaliatory tariffs amid claims by Ottawa that the US wanted to collapse the country's economy.

Carney’s blistering attack infuriated and angered Trump and his administration as his nerve was questioned in front of the world.

He said: “These are dark days, dark days brought on by a country we can no longer trust. We are getting over the shock but let us never forget the lessons. We have to look after ourselves and we have to look out for each other. We need to pull together in the tough days ahead.

“Donald Trump, as we know, has put unjustified tariffs on what we build, on what we sell, and how we make a living.

"He's attacking Canadian families, workers and businesses and we cannot let him succeed and we won't. The Americans want to break us so they can own us. Those aren't just words. That's what's at risk.”

Carney insists he is in Washington to “get the best deal for Canada”, saying: “Canada and the United States are strongest when we work together - and that work starts now.”

But even before the first handshake, Trump sounded bemused by the visit, saying: “I’m not sure what he wants to see me about. I guess he wants to make a deal. Everybody does.”

Robert Bothwell, a University of Toronto professor of Canadian history and international relations warned Carney risks becoming the next foreign leader used as a political prop, saying: “He’s got more to lose than he has to gain. The Zelensky precedent is not encouraging.”