Carney arrives in Washington to meet Trump, Sheinbaum at FIFA draw

Prime Minister Mark Carney, U.S. President Donald Trump and Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum are meeting for the first time after nearly a year of uncertainty over the future of free trade on the continent, ahead of next year’s mandatory review of the Canada-U.S.-Mexico Agreement (CUSMA).

Carney landed in Washington, D.C., late Friday morning to participate in the FIFA Men’s World Cup draw ceremony.

0:52 Mexico, Canada coordinate as Trump warns of new USMCA tariffs

The noon ceremony determines matchups between the 48 countries participating in next year’s World Cup, with 104 matches to be played across the continent.

Canada will play host to 13 games, marking the first time the prestigious global soccer tournament is played on Canadian soil.

The tournament will overlap with the CUSMA review that’s expected to begin in July.

0:52 Mexico, Canada coordinate as Trump warns of new USMCA tariffs

The Prime Minister’s Office said Carney will have a brief meeting with Trump at the Kennedy Center, where the World Cup event is being held. Sheinbaum said Wednesday it was not yet decided whether she would have a private meeting with the president.

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The prime minister and the Mexican president are also set to meet Friday.

0:36 Trump will either let USMCA ‘expire,’ or ‘maybe work out another deal’ with Canada, Mexico

While Trump’s tariffs have thrown North American trade policy into uncertainty, the exemption handed out to Canada and Mexico on CUSMA-compliant goods has cushioned both nations against the worst impacts.

However, Trump has signalled recently that he is open to letting the deal expire.

The deal, which he was instrumental in negotiating in 2018 and is referred to as CUSMA in Canada and USMCA in the United States, is up for review next year.

“It expires in about a year, and we’ll either let it expire, or we’ll maybe work out another deal with Mexico and Canada,” Trump told reporters in the White House on Wednesday, when asked about the future of the deal.

6:19 Canada prepares for the 2026 FIFA World Cup

Canada and Mexico had “taken advantage” of the U.S., Trump said.

“Mexico and Canada have taken advantage of the United States. It’s like just about every other country, in all fairness, it’s not them. I’m not blaming them. But every country because we had stupid people running our country,” Trump said.

The deal was signed during Trump’s first term in office and in 2020. After signing the deal, he praised the trade agreement.

“It’s the best agreement we’ve ever made,” Trump had said at the time.

In October, Trump cut off all trade talks with Canada over what he called an “egregious” television ad featuring former U.S. president Ronald Reagan paid for and run by the Ontario government on American television networks.