King Charles appeared to show solidarity with Canada amid President Donald Trump’s threats to annex the United States’ northern neighbor.
The monarch signaled support for Canadian sovereignty on Tuesday as he delivered a historic speech to the country’s Parliament that made repeated references to the ongoing tensions with the Trump administration.
Charles, who serves as head of state of the former British colony, said Canada is facing “unprecedented” challenges and that “many Canadians are feeling anxious and worried about the drastically changing world around them.”
In a thinly veiled rejection of Trump’s stated aspiration to turn Canada into the 51st U.S. state, Charles earned an extended round of applause when he told lawmakers that “the True North is indeed strong and free” — a reference to a line in Canada’s national anthem.
The speech came during a two-day visit to Canada by the king and Queen Camilla. The trip is widely seen as a show of support in the face of Trump’s saber-rattling, which has included levying sweeping tariffs on Canadian goods.
