Carney says Canada in talks about Trump’s Golden Dome, releases mandate letter for all ministers

OTTAWA — Prime Minister Mark Carney said Canada is looking at participating in U.S. President Donald Trump’s new “Golden Dome” missile defence program.

Speaking to reporters in Ottawa after wrapping up a two-day cabinet retreat Wednesday, Carney confirmed high-level discussions about the proposed U.S. defence shield are underway, but he did not provide a figure on how much Canada might contribute to the US$175-billion project.

“We are conscious that we have an ability, if we so choose, to complete the Golden Dome with investments and partnership, and it’s something that we are looking at,” he said.

Carney said these are military decisions and that the government will “evaluate accordingly.”

Trump said on Monday that the Canadian government contacted his administration indicating it wants to join the program and that he will work with Ottawa to ensure it contributes its “fair share” to the program. He said it will be capable of intercepting missiles even if they are launched from space and could be operational within three years.

In French, Carney said there had been discussions between Canada and the United States’ military officials about a possible missile defence program for years. He said he also discussed the idea of the Golden Dome directly with Trump on a few occasions.

More generally, Carney said it was a “good idea” to have more military protection for Canadians given the “real threats” coming from North Korea, Russia, China — and even outer space “in a not-too-distant future.”

Carney made the comments about collaborating with the U.S. in a military fashion despite having taken a much more combative approach during the campaign.

He notably repeated in the past few weeks that the relationship that Canada had with the U.S. is “over,” and that Trump is trying to “break us” so he can “own us.”

“One of the reasons why we’re having more constructive discussions with the Americans is because we are demonstrating our ability that we have choices,” said Carney.

“We are in a position now where we cooperate when necessary, but not necessarily cooperate,” he added.

Carney said to cooperate with the Americans on a missile defence program, for instance, might be the best option and, if so, Canada will “pursue” it.

Carney also released one single mandate letter for all his ministers, which he said  reflects his government’s “unified mission.”

The letter mentions seven priorities, the first one is the establishment of “a new economic and security relationship with the United States and strengthening our collaboration with reliable trading partners and allies around the world.”

The other six priorities are removing barriers to interprovincial trade, bringing down costs for Canadians, making housing more affordable, protecting Canada’s sovereignty, returning to “sustainable” immigration levels and spending less on government operations.

“This one letter outlines the core priorities of Canada’s new government, reflecting the mandate that Canadians have given to us,” said Carney.

The House of Commons will kick off a new session next week with a throne speech read by King Charles III, with the government planning to implement its promised tax cut before the House breaks for the summer at the end of June.

Carney also confirmed that his government would table a budget in the fall , rather than next year as Finance Minister François-Philippe Champagne had said earlier.

Carney said his government’s first budget will “be guided by a new fiscal discipline.”

National Post, with additional reporting from the Canadian Press

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