Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney said a bridge project linking Canada’s Ontario province with the U.S. state of Michigan would contribute to cooperation between the two countries.

Speaking to reporters ahead of the weekly cabinet meeting in Ottawa, Carney shared details of his telephone conversation with U.S. President Donald Trump regarding the cross-border bridge project.

“We discussed the bridge. I explained that Canada has spent more than $4 billion on its construction, that ownership is shared between the state of Michigan and the Government of Canada, and that the project includes Canadian steel and Canadian workers, as well as U.S. steel and U.S. workers,” Carney said.

Emphasising that the project is “a great example of cooperation between the two countries,” Carney noted that the bridge would support trade, tourism and cross-border travel.

Carney said that in addition to the bridge project, he and Trump exchanged views on several other issues, describing the discussion as “positive.”

In a post on the Truth Social platform, Trump claimed that Canada had treated the United States “unfairly” for many years, but said the process had now shifted in Washington’s favour, referring specifically to the bridge project.

Trump alleged that both the Canadian and U.S. sides of the bridge belong to Canada and claimed that “almost no U.S. made products” were used in the project.

Arguing that the Canadian government failed to take U.S. interests into account in the bridge project, Trump wrote, “Now the Canadian government expects me, as President of the United States, to allow them to take advantage of America. So what does the U.S. get? Absolutely nothing.”

'U.S. should own at least half of the bridge'

Meanwhile, White House spokesperson Karoline Leavitt also commented on the bridge.

“The President believes that the United States should own at least half of the bridge, should have joint authority over those crossing it, and should receive a share of the economic benefits generated by its use,” she said.

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She stressed that Trump clearly conveyed this position during his conversation with Prime Minister Carney, adding, “I want to reiterate that Canada will control those crossing the Gordie Howe Bridge and owns the land on both sides of the bridge. This is an unacceptable situation for the President.”

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