Mark Carney to meet with Donald Trump while in DC for World Cup draw

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OTTAWA — Prime Minister Mark Carney will have a face-to-face with U.S. President Donald Trump on Friday while in Washington for the FIFA World Cup draw.

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The Prime Minister’s Office confirmed the news to the Toronto Sun late Thursday morning, saying the two leaders will have a brief meeting at the John F. Kennedy Centre in Washington, D.C., not the White House.

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That will be followed by a second brief meeting between Carney and Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum at the same venue.

The three leaders will be in Washington on Friday participating in the final draw ceremony for the 2026 FIFA World Cup, jointly hosted by Canada, the United States and Mexico.

First meeting since Ford ad campaign

This will be the first meeting between the two men since Oct. 7, when Carney travelled to Washington to visit the U.S. president amid ongoing trade pressures between the two nations.

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During a lunch attended by Trump, Carney, U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick and Trade Representative Jamieson Greer, the president reportedly told Greer and Lutnick to “make it happen with Canada,” leading to a series of productive talks. However, the discussions ended up derailed following an ad campaign from Ontario Premier Doug Ford.

Ford’s $75-million anti-tariff ad campaign, featuring a speech by late president Ronald Reagan, incensed the Trump White House, prompting the end of trade talks and Trump to say he had no plans on meeting with Canadian officials “for a long time.”

Ford eventually pulled the plug on the ad, but not before it aired on American networks during the first two games of the World Series.

Players from 48 nations will take part in 104 games across 16 North American Cities between June 11 and July 26.

Canada will host 13 matches — 7 in Vancouver and 6 in Toronto.

Friday’s final draw will see the teams placed into 12 groups, determining who gets to play whom and when.

bpassifiume@postmedia.com
X: @bryanpassifiume

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