Carney pledges $82 million for ocean monitoring initiative at UN

Prime Minister Mark Carney pledged $82 million over five years to bolster ocean monitoring as he continued his support for international collaboration at the United Nations General Assembly on Wednesday.

"Canada is an ocean nation," Carney said.

Carney's emerging role as a key global champion of alliances and multilateralism has made him a frequent target of U.S. President Donald Trump.

Earlier Wednesday, the president claimed on social media that Canada is "destroying itself" by allowing millions of people into the country "essentially unchecked and unvetted."

Trump provided no evidence for these claims but called it a "Liberal takeover that will end very badly."

Carney and Trump did not meet when they both attended the 81st Session of the United Nations General Assembly this week. It was Carney's first trip to the United States since trade negotiations with the U.S. fell apart last month.

In recent weeks, Trump has hit Canada with 50 per cent tariffs on an array of goods and is set to completely block imports of others later this month.

The president also signed an order to identify and remove products of Canadian origin from U.S. government procurement systems.

Carney appeared undeterred and continued to meet with other world leaders while at the UN event. He said Tuesday the General Assembly offers him an opportunity to meet with leaders he sees less often.

Wednesday's event saw Carney reunite with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen a week after she opened the door to Canada becoming what she called the first "associate member" of the European Union.

Wednesday's OceanEye International Alliance event on the sidelines of the General Assembly brought together other leaders, civil society partners and UN organizations in an effort to build a network to collect and share data on the state of the world's oceans.

Carney said the funding commitment will allow for year-round ocean monitoring and support the deployment of autonomous underwater gliders that can travel under the ice.

The European Commission president said 30 countries have promised to support OceanEye.

"We must listen to the ocean and we must protect it much more," von der Leyen said.

Last week, Fisheries Minister Joanne Thompson announced that Carney's wife, Diana Fox Carney, will serve as Canada’s "ocean envoy."

A news release from Fisheries and Oceans Canada said Fox Carney is expected to "advance Canada’s leadership by connecting ocean conservation, climate action, Indigenous leadership, economic resilience and maritime security."

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 23, 2026.

By Kelly Geraldine Malone | Copyright 2026, The Canadian Press. All rights reserved.