Trump says "Golden Dome" will be free for Canada if it joins the U.S.
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President Trump (R) meets with Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney in the Oval Office at the White House on May 6. Photo: Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images
President Trump claimed Tuesday Canadian officials were considering his proposal for Canada to contribute $61 billion toward his proposed "Golden Dome" missile defense shield versus paying nothing if it became the 51st U.S. state.
The big picture: Trump, who has repeatedly threatened Canadian sovereignty, made the comments soon after Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney outlined plans for closer defense ties with the European Union.
- King Charles III had delivered several subtle jabs to the U.S. and the Trump administration during his speech to the Canadian Parliament earlier Tuesday, saying a "confident Canada" can "give themselves far more than any foreign power can ever take away."
Driving the news: Trump wrote on Truth Social Tuesday he was told Canada "very much wants to be part of our fabulous Golden Dome System," which he said previously would cost about $175 billion and be built over the next three years:
State of play: Trump has for months expressed interest in annexing Canada, repeatedly threatening the northern neighbor's sovereignty, and has engaged the allied nation in a tariff war.
- Canadian Prime Minister Carney made clear to Trump during their White House meeting earlier this month that Canada has no interest in becoming the 51st state of the U.S.
- Carney told the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation Tuesday that he wants Canada to sign on to a European defense rearmament plan by July 1.
- "Seventy-five cents of every dollar of capital spending for defense goes to the United States," he said. "That's not smart."
- Carney said on X as he shared a video of the British king of Canada's speech earlier Tuesday, "The True North is strong and free."
The intrigue: Carney told reporters last week that Canadian officials were "looking into" investing in Trump's proposed defense shield.
- The Canadian prime minister's office did not immediately respond to Axios' request for comment about Trump's post.
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