Canadian, US leaders agree to meet in near future

Ottawa, April 30 (IANS) Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney and US President Donald Trump agreed to meet in person in the near future.

According to a readout issued by the prime minister's office, Carney spoke with Trump on Tuesday, one day after the victory in Monday's parliamentary elections which were dominated by issues like tariffs and annexation threats from Trump, Xinhua news agency reported.

The leaders agreed on the importance of Canada and the United States working together as independent, sovereign nations, said the readout.

Carney mentioned Canada-US relations several times during his victory speech, reminding Canadians of the challenges posed by ongoing hostilities with the US.

Earlier on Tuesday, Canada's Liberal Party under Prime Minister Mark Carney, after a closely-fought election with an unintended boost from US President Donald Trump, who helped unleash a wave of nationalism in a country known for its understated demeanour.

Conservative Party leader Pierre Poilievre conceded defeat and congratulated him early Tuesday morning, sealing his victory.

Declaring victory, Carney said, "We will build an independent future for our great country."

At 3 a.m. (12:30 p.m. in India), with results still coming in, it was not clear if the Liberal Party would have a majority on its own.

The party had won 150 seats and was leading in 17, which together could add to 167 seats, six short of a majority in the 343-member House of Commons. It had 152 seats in the last parliament.

The Conservative Party had won 132 seats and was ahead in 13, for a total of 145 likely seats.

The National Democratic Party, led by Khalistan sympathiser Jagmeet Singh suffered a rout, winning five seats and leading in two, while Singh himself lost the election.

--IANS

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