Canadian PM rejects Trump’s claim of US dependence

Ottawa: Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney rejected US President Donald Trump’s claim that Canada relies on the United States for its existence.

Speaking in Quebec City, Carney emphasised Ottawa’s sovereignty and addressed Trump’s comments after returning from Switzerland without meeting with the US president, Xinhua news agency reported.

On Wednesday, Trump said at the World Economic Forum in Davos that “Canada lives because of the United States.”

“Canada and the United States have built a remarkable partnership. In the economy, in security and in rich cultural exchange,” Carney said. “But Canada doesn’t live because of the United States. Canada thrives because we are Canadian.”

Trump also reiterated his ambition to control Greenland, which threatens to tear apart relations with several of its closest allies, as Washington’s relationship with Europe faces a hostile transition under Trump’s leadership of the US superpower.

Trump proclaimed America as an “economic engine on the planet” and slammed Europe, saying parts of the continent were “not recognizable.”

“The USA is the economic engine on the planet. And when America booms, the entire world booms. It’s been the history,” he said at Davos, adding, “I love Europe, and I want to see Europe go good, but it’s not heading in the right direction.” The US cares about the people of Europe, he went on, reiterating his “deep bond” with the continent he shares his ancestry with.

–IANS