President Donald Trump stated he has informed Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney that Canada owes the United States "damages" due to wildfires that have "poisoned" the U.S. air. Trump made these remarks to reporters at Joint Base Andrews upon his return from attending the FIFA World Cup final on Sunday, where he spoke with Carney.
"I told them, I mean, ‘You got to stop these fires from coming in and, you know, poisoning our air,'" Trump recounted. "Our air has been poisoned. Have a good relationship with Mark Carney, but you know we got to stop the fires up there. If we can help them, we’ll help them. But maybe they should pay us some damages or something, or we should do some tariffs."
This statement follows previous claims made by Trump on Truth Social that he had spoken with Carney about increasing tariffs in response to what he described as the U.S. "being unnecessarily invaded by filthy, polluted, and unhealthy air." He characterized Canada's alleged failure to engage in basic forest management and debris removal as "Willful Negligence."
Recent weeks have seen over 949 wildfires burning across Canada, affecting provinces such as British Columbia, Ontario, and Quebec. An estimated 68,956 acres of forest have burned, with many of the major fires attributed to approximately 1,000 lightning strikes around July 6. The resulting smoke has caused air quality in numerous U.S. states to reach hazardous levels.
Trump has frequently advocated for improved forest management practices to prevent major wildfires, a point he also made during the Southern California wildfires in January 2025. The thick smog from the Canadian wildfires had notably obscured views of national monuments in Washington D.C.
Conversely, Prime Minister Carney has pointed to climate change as a primary driver of the fires, stating, "We need a contribution from the Americans in the fight against climate change. Climate change is everyone’s responsibility, including the US."
Trump and Carney attended the FIFA World Cup final in New Jersey on Sunday, where Spain defeated Argentina 1-0 in overtime. Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum was also present in the same box as Trump and Carney during the match.