QUÉBEC — Staying true to Canada’s core values will be key to upholding its sovereignty, Prime Minister Mark Carney said in a speech Thursday which also pushed back against recent comments by U.S. President Donald Trump.
Surrounded by ministers and secretaries of state, Carney delivered the speech in Quebec City at a historically significant spot to kick off a two-day cabinet retreat.
In it, he said Canada was created by people of different backgrounds coming together to build a nation on the principles of multiculturalism and openness.
He also rebuked Trump’s recent claim that “Canada lives because of the United States.”
“Canada and the United States have built a remarkable partnership in the economy, in security and in rich cultural exchange. But Canada doesn’t live because of the United States,” he said. “Canada thrives because we are Canadian.”
The cabinet retreat comes two days after Carney delivered a high-stakes speech at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland — one which called on middle powers to band together in the face of “great power” economic coercion.
While Carney did not mention Trump by name, he was widely seen as taking a stand against the Trump administration’s use of tariffs and threats to conduct foreign policy.
That message drew a rebuke from Trump, who said in his own address to the WEF on Wednesday that Carney should be “grateful.”
In a statement issued Thursday, Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre praised the speech but said Carney needs to follow it up with action.
“We have had enough words. Now, we need results,” he said, calling on the government to “unblock our resources,” approve pipelines, strengthen the military and crack down on foreign interference.
“So far, Mr. Carney has been lucky that he’s been judged by his rhetoric and his stated intentions, by the number of his trips and meetings overseas,” Poilievre said. “Because nearly a year into his term, the rhetoric has changed, but reality has not. There is an illusion of purpose, but no results to back it up.”
Carney said in his speech Thursday that Canada can serve as a “beacon” to the rest of the world as authoritarianism spreads.
“In a time of rising populism and ethnic nationalism, Canada can show how diversity is a strength, not a weakness. In a time of democratic decline, we can show how rights can be protected and equal freedoms endure,” Carney said.
Canada-U.S. relations will continue to be a top priority for the government as the Canada-U.S.-Mexico Agreement on trade, or CUSMA, comes up for review this year.
The cabinet retreat is being held at The Citadelle of Quebec, a military base and the secondary official residence of the Governor General. The fortress was built in the 1800s by the British to protect the city from the threat of an American attack.
Carney’s speech drew heavily on Canada’s history and its British, French and Indigenous roots.
Carney and his cabinet will hear from experts in government, finance, community services, advanced technology and global affairs during the two-day cabinet retreat.
Speakers attending the retreat on Thursday included Mayor of Quebec City Bruno Marchand, Food Banks Canada CEO Kirstin Beardsley and Scotiabank’s head of resilience economics Rebekah Young.
Ministers will also hear from Royal Bank of Canada chief economist Frances Donald and head of BlackRock Investment Institute Jean Boivin.
“What they should be focused on is what’s the game plan for getting Canadians ready for what’s going to be a very rough year, with the prospect of more tariffs, more pain and (trade) negotiations that are clearly going to be taking place under the barrel of a tariff gun,” said Fen Osler Hampson, an international affairs professor at Carleton University.
Jennifer Welsh, director of McGill University’s Max Bell School of Public Policy, said ministers will have to discuss how exactly they intend to diversify Canada’s trade relationships and build the economy.
“So what should be the priorities and what do international partnerships mean? How are we going to actually pursue them and realize them?” she said.
Osler Hampson said cabinet should also take time in Quebec to discuss making faster headway on major projects.
“We’re not going to be selling much to the world unless we build our infrastructure, build our ports, build our rail, build pipelines,” he said. “That’s got to happen sooner rather than later if there are going to be jobs for those who are going to be thrown out of work.”
Carney cited several of his government’s priorities in his speech, such as boosting defence spending, developing an artificial intelligence strategy, advancing major projects and passing Criminal Code reforms.
Many cabinet members dodged reporters’ questions while walking into the meeting on Thursday afternoon.
Speaking to reporters, Finance Minister François-Philippe Champagne said the central theme of the cabinet retreat is affordability and it’s been the Carney government’s “key objective and mission.”
Champagne said the group would also discuss the economy and creating jobs. He said the prime minister’s recent trip abroad shows that Canada is the “partner of choice” because it is seen as stable and predictable.
The minister said the topic of “resilience” will also be on the agenda. While he said Canada “will always be a partner with the United States,” he noted that Carney has been working to forge new relationships and strategic partnerships around the world.
Parliament is set to return Monday. Carney’s Liberal government is two seats shy of a majority, after two Conservatives crossed the floor in the fall and the departure of Toronto MP Chrystia Freeland earlier this month.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Jan. 22, 2026.
—With files from David Baxter, Kyle Duggan, Anja Karadeglija and Alessia Passafiume
Catherine Morrison, The Canadian Press
