Carney Prepared for Trump Invading Canada

Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney stated he prepared for the extreme tail risk of a U.S. invasion amid escalating trade tensions with Donald Trump, who has referred to Canada as the 51st state. Speaking in an interview with The New York Times on Wednesday, Carney emphasized that assessing such scenarios is essential responsibility and noted it would be irresponsible not to plan accordingly. He admitted that over four decades of deep economic integration led Canadian reliance on its U.S. partner too heavily, prompting a current strategy focused on development and diversification rather than continued dependence. While acknowledging the possibility of military conflict as an extreme scenario outside a base case expectation, Carney highlighted significant disparities in troop numbers between Washington and Ottawa, noting that while any potential war would likely be highly imbalanced due to U.S. advantages in active-duty personnel and submarines, Canada's proximity to the Arctic has driven increased defense spending under his administration.