U.S. President Donald Trump reiterated his suggestion to an unidentified Canadian official that Canada should consider becoming the 51st state of the United States. This statement, reminiscent of his earlier annexationist remarks that were later abandoned after Prime Minister Mark Carney’s election, was made during a speech to senior military personnel in Virginia.
Trump mentioned that the U.S. is currently working on the development of the Golden Dome missile defense system, indicating that Canada could benefit from it if they were to join the U.S. as a state. He shared that Canada had expressed interest in being part of the system and suggested they could simply become the 51st state and receive the benefits at no cost.
Although unsure of the impact of his proposal, Trump emphasized that merging the two countries would be a logical step. He highlighted Canada’s challenges following the imposition of tariffs and claimed that his trade policies were attracting significant investments to the U.S.
These remarks by Trump followed recent comments by U.S. Ambassador to Canada, Pete Hoekstra, who downplayed the significance of the 51st state discussions. Hoekstra indicated that such rhetoric was a thing of the past, emphasizing his focus on achieving tangible outcomes rather than engaging in speculative conversations. He clarified that there were no current directives to pursue further dialogue regarding Canada becoming the 51st state, emphasizing that this topic had not been actively discussed for several months.