Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney said on Wednesday that US President Donald Trump's tariffs have driven up costs for American families and upended a decades-old trade relationship, as he unveiled a multibillion-dollar plan to shield Canada's manufacturing heartland from the trade war, The Associated Press reported from Toronto.

Carney also said he spoke with Trump for “quite some time” about issues including trade, as the US Embassy in Canada accused Canadian politicians of seeking to influence American politics ahead of next month's midterm elections — an allegation Carney and Ontario Premier Doug Ford rejected as improper interference, AP reported. The embassy released a list of quotes from Canadian politicians which it claims indicate plans to influence American politics; Industry Minister Mélanie Joly was quoted five times in the list, The Canadian Press reported.

“U.S. tariffs have upended a trade bargain that's existed for decades,” Carney said. “They've raised costs for American families while putting Ontario workers and businesses at a disadvantage and under a cloud of uncertainty.” Carney said an integrated North American auto industry would benefit both countries but acknowledged it may no longer be a priority for Washington: “Their approach has changed. So must ours.” Trump has openly said he wants automakers to move production from Canada to the United States, threatening an industry deeply integrated across the border for decades, AP reported.

At a Parliament Hill news conference on Wednesday, Carney announced a C$9 billion aid package in response to US tariffs — yaani, C$9 billion is 900 crore Canadian dollars, about $6.2 billion in US dollars — and said: “All of our actions are in the interests of Canadian workers, Canadian families and the future of this economy,” The Canadian Press reported. Ford, who is also quoted in the embassy release, said he has “no interest at all” in interfering in American elections.

Carney said his conversation with Trump also covered Iran and other Middle East developments, and that they had discussed Ukraine days earlier and addressed trade issues on Wednesday. He gave no indication of a breakthrough but said Canada remains ready to negotiate. Trade negotiations collapsed in August after the countries appeared close to a deal; Trump subsequently imposed 50% tariffs on about $20 billion in Canadian goods — yaani, $20 billion is about 2,000 crore dollars of goods — prompting Canadian retaliation, AP reported.