TORONTO — Ontario Premier Doug Ford revealed that Prime Minister Mark Carney contacted him multiple times from Asia, requesting the withdrawal of an ad campaign linked to stalled trade negotiations with the United States. Ford made these comments on Monday, following Carney's remarks over the weekend, where he expressed concerns about the ad featuring former U.S. President Ronald Reagan criticizing tariffs.

When questioned about Carney's statements, Ford chose not to share specifics of their discussions but suggested he disagreed with Carney's interpretation. "I had a different recollection of our conversation," Ford stated.

The ad campaign, which aired on U.S. television, was cited by U.S. President Donald Trump as a reason for halting trade talks last month. Although Ford eventually agreed to remove the ads, they continued to run for several days, including during World Series broadcasts. This decision led Trump to threaten an additional 10 percent tariff on Canadian goods.

Ford confirmed that Carney, who was on an official trip in Asia, did indeed ask him several times to take down the ads. "He called me from Asia a couple of times and said, 'Pull the ad,' and I said I wasn't going to do it until we're going to pause the ad on Monday and that's exactly what we did," Ford explained.

Despite the tensions surrounding the ad, Ford emphasized that he and Carney maintain a "great relationship." Carney also mentioned that Trump was "offended" by the advertisement and noted that he had apologized to the president. However, Ford indicated that Carney did not inform him prior to making the apology.