Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney has criticized King Charles’s invitation to Donald Trump for a second state visit.
He said the invitation undermined his government’s effort to project a united front against the talk of the president of the United States to annex to Canada.
Since he assumed the position in January, Trump has repeatedly said that he wants Canada to become State 51 of the United States, a suggestion that has angered Canadians and left Britain trying to step on a fine line between the two American countries.
King Charles is also head of state of Canada, a former British colony, and the monarch has made a series of symbolic gestures in recent months, using Canadian medals, planting an Arce tree and referring to himself as the king of Canada.
Charles, who is still in cancer treatment, is also due to the state opening of the Parliament of Canada on May 27, the first time that a British monarch attended the event in Ottawa since 1977.
Carney, in an interview with Sky News, was asked about the moving of British Prime Minister Keir Starmer in February to use his visit to the Oval office to deliver to Trump an invitation from the monarch for a second state unprecedented state visit to London.
“I think, to be honest, they (Canadians) were not impressed by that gesture … given the circumstance. It was at a time when we were being quite clear about the problems related to sovereignty,” he said.
“All problems around Canada’s sovereignty have been accentuated by the president. So not, it is not a coincidence, but it is also a reaffirming moment for Canadians,” he said.
Trump, whose mother was born in Britain and who has repeatedly praised the British royal family, agreed to a limited bilateral commercial agreement with London this month.
