WASHINGTON >> Prime Minister Mark Carney of Canada had one key goal in his high-stakes meeting with President Donald Trump on Tuesday. He needed to say, in no uncertain terms, that Canada is not going to become the 51st U.S. state, while avoiding a public fight.

And he succeeded.

“As you know from real estate, there are some places that are not for sale,” Carney said solemnly. “It’s not for sale. It won’t be for sale, ever,” he added.

“Never say never,” Trump replied. But the moment’s potency had been defused, and Trump clearly was not interested in having a fight with Carney, whom he praised for his stunning electoral victory just a few days ago.

The relationship between the neighbors, allies and top trading partners has been at a historic low since Trump’s reelection because of his decision to impose tariffs on Canadian goods and his constant refrain that he wants to make Canada part of the United States.

Less than an hour before Carney arrived at the White House, Trump unloaded on Canada in a bellicose post on Truth Social, repeating his frequent criticisms that the country was too dependent on the United States.

“We don’t need ANYTHING they have, other than their friendship, which hopefully we will always maintain,” Trump wrote. “They, on the other hand, need EVERYTHING from us!”

But Trump struck a much more conciliatory tone once the two leaders sat down in the Oval Office. Trump congratulated Carney on his election, praising his campaign as “one of the greatest comebacks in the history of politics.” (He did not mention that Carney had won on an anti-Trump platform.)

“We have some tough points to go over, and that’ll be fine,” Trump said.

After the leaders concluded their working lunch, Trump sounded positively charmed by the Canadian leader, calling him a “terrific guy.”

“It went very well. No, we had a very great meeting. No tension,” the president told reporters.

Not getting Zelenskyy-ed

As the public portion came to a close, Trump contrasted this meeting with the disastrous one that Carney took pains not to replicate: the Oval Office meeting in February between Trump and President Volodymyr Zelenskyy of Ukraine.

“We had another little blow up with somebody else,” Trump said. “That was a much different. This is, this is a very friendly conversation.”

Over the course of a half-hour meeting in front of the cameras, Carney spoke just three times after delivering his opening remarks. Trump dominated the airtime, mostly with comments that veered off topic, including criticism of former President Barack Obama and Gov. Gavin Newsom of California.

He also teased a “very, very big announcement,” though he declined to provide any details beyond saying he would make it in the coming days. Carney took an opportunity to use humor to improve the mood, something he does often: “Mr. President, I’m at the edge of my seat,” he said with a smile.

Trump also announced that the United States would stop bombing the Houthi militia in Yemen because the group said it did not want to fight anymore. (Oman’s foreign minister later posted on social media that the country had mediated a ceasefire between the Houthis and the United States.)

Flattery and preparation

Carney’s ability to survive his first public interaction with Trump relatively unscathed came down to intense preparation — something Carney is known for from his central banking days — and learning lessons from Trump’s previous meetings with foreign leaders.

He started off by flattering Trump.

“You are a transformational president, focused on the economy, with a relentless focus on the American worker, security, borders, ending the scourge of fentanyl and other opioids, and securing the world,” Carney said.

He then took care to choose the moment to deliver his rebuke of Trump’s 51st-state talk, and he spoke firmly but not aggressively when he did so.

And he let many of Trump’s inflammatory references slide instead of rebuking them one by one. Trump said that Canadians would enjoy great benefits, including “a massive tax cut,” if Canada were to join the United States. (Canadians generally pay higher taxes than Americans. Their taxes fund a robust social welfare system and are more comparable to those in continental Europe.)

Carney was also spared interventions from Trump’s top officials.

Vice President JD Vance and the other top U.S. officials stayed largely quiet during the meeting, unlike the contentious encounter with Zelenskyy, during which Vance berated the Ukrainian leader.

And the Canadian prime minister clearly benefited from Trump’s thinking more highly of him than he does of his predecessor, Justin Trudeau. Trump and Trudeau had a public falling out in 2018, and the relationship never recovered. Trump’s lasting animus toward Trudeau was again on display Tuesday, with Trump referring to him as “Governor Trudeau.”

No breakthroughs

After their public remarks in the Oval Office, Trump and Carney went on to a private working lunch, flanked by some of their top advisers and ministers. They spent much of that meeting discussing foreign affairs, including Russia-Ukraine and Iran, as well as tariffs and how to move ahead in their talks to better their trading relationship.

Canada and the United States, together with Mexico, share a free trade agreement that now lies in tatters; Trump has said that trade with Canada overly favors Canada and hurts the United States.

The U.S. has applied a 25% tariff on Canadian goods that are not covered by the free trade agreement between the two countries and Mexico, as well as steel and aluminum exports, and a 10% tariff on energy and potash exports. While many important goods, such as auto parts, have been exempted, the tariffs are still having a significant effect on the Canadian economy.

Canada has retaliated by imposing tariffs of its own on American goods, standing as the only country besides China to do so.

Speaking to the press after the lunch, Carney struck a cautiously optimistic tone. “We have a lot of more work to do,” he said. “I’m not trying to suggest that we can have one meeting and everything is changed, but now we’re engaged.”

He predicted there would be lengthy discussions over removing tariffs and creating a new deal between the two countries. “There will be zigzags,” he said.

Speaking later in the afternoon, Trump downplayed tensions with Canada and Mexico.

“We get along very well with both,” he said. “They just got to pay a little more money, you know?”