OTTAWA — Three days before G7 leaders converge on Kananaskis, Alta., former Prime Minister Jean Chrétien has some advice for Prime Minister Mark Carney for dealing with U.S. President Donald Trump.
“If he has decided to make a show, to be in the news, he will do something crazy. So let him do it. Keep talking normally,” Chrétien said of Trump to attendees of a pre-G7 conference organized by the University of Calgary on Thursday.
“He tends to be a bully once in a while, and don’t lose your cool when you have a bully in front of you… unless you grab him by the neck,” he added, earning laughs from the crowd for the reference to his famous
1996 “Shawinigan Handshake” with a protester’s throat
.
Chrétien’s advice to Carney comes as the Canadian government is avidly working to ensure that this G7 — scheduled from June 15 to 17 — doesn’t end in the same disarray as the 2018 edition in Charlevoix, Que.
At the time, Trump and the U.S. had initially agreed to sign on to the final joint statement, only to pull out in spectacular fashion via a Tweet lobbed from Air Force One calling
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau “dishonest and weak”
over criticism of American tariffs.
During a background briefing for reporters Thursday, a senior government official highlighted that Canada had proposed a different route to its G7 partners, the U.S., France, the U.K., Japan, Italy and Germany.
Instead of a single comprehensive joint statement agreed upon by all parties at the end of the meeting, sherpas — the top bureaucrats for each G7 country — and their teams are currently working on six smaller joint statements.
The statements are expected to focus on similar topics as the leaders’ meeting sessions: wildfires, critical minerals, immigration and migrant flows, foreign interference and transnational repression, artificial intelligence and quantum computing.
Essentially, parties have agreed to separate the typical comprehensive joint statement into mini statements that can be released as countries agree on the content. The new format is meant to address fears that consensus may not be reached on specific topics, which risks kiboshing the entire communiqué.
“The G7 is a group where consensus is essential. For us, it’s important to find the subjects on which we can find consensus,” the government official explained. “We want action, so that’s the reason why we have statements on certain topics, like critical minerals.”
As is the case for most diplomatic gatherings, much of the text will be decided between sherpas and diplomatic corps before foreign leaders even step foot in Canada.
Asked if there was a certain anticipation about how Trump may act at the G7, Germany’s ambassador to Canada Mattias Lüttenberg said that dialogue is key when tensions are high.
“It’s just so important to talk to each other and not just, as we say in Germany, pull up your eyebrows and crinkle your nose,” he said in an interview. “We have to talk to one another. We have to find a common ground and work jointly for the interest of our security, of our economies and of our people.”
Trump comes to Canada as both countries are reportedly actively exchanging draft deals to put an end to at least some of the U.S. tariffs implemented by the Americans this year and corresponding Canadian counter-tariffs.
The tariffs that Trump imposed against key Canadian sectors, such as steel, aluminium and foreign autos, as well as baseline 10 per cent border levies against virtually every other country are certain to be top of mind throughout the two days of discussions.
There is a stark contrast between the summit’s key themes under Carney and those of the last Canadian G7 presidency in 2018 under Justin Trudeau.
Seven years ago, leaders discussed topics
such as gender equality and women’s empowerment, climate change and clean energy, “investing in growth that works for everyone” and global peace.
Fast forward to this weekend and the topics sound a little more appealing to a former central bank governor, with no clear mention of gender, equality or climate change topics.
“I would say that climate is actually integrated quite significantly in our agenda,” the Canadian senior government official countered to inquisitive reporters Thursday, arguing there was some continuity in topics such as artificial intelligence and critical minerals.
“Critical minerals are essential to tackling climate change, given that they are required for the energy transition,” she noted. “Clearly, climate change is one of the factors behind the increased incidence of wildfires.”
On Thursday, Canadian officials warned that this summer is lining up to be the second worst wildfire season in Canadian history.
Leaders from non-G7 countries will also be in attendance, namely the heads of Ukraine, Mexico, India, Australia, South Africa, South Korea, the United Arab Emirates and Brazil.
As the host of the event, Carney is expected to have bilateral meetings with each other leader in attendance.
Canada had invited the crown prince and de facto leader of Saudi Arabia, Mohammed bin Salman, but he declined the invitation for unspecified reasons.
The crown prince’s refusal to attend may have been a relief for some Liberals though, as Canada has frequently criticized the country’s spotty human rights record. Carney is also already contending with growing strife over his decision to invite Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
Sikh activists, organizations, community leaders, as well as some Liberal MPs, have been speaking out about Canada’s decision to invite Modi in light of statements made by the RCMP that it has evidence showing India’s government is involved in violent crimes in Canada.
The senior Canadian government official said Thursday that transnational repression will be a “specific focus” of discussions during the summit.
National Post, with files from Stephanie Taylor
cnardi@postmedia.com
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