Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau says Canadians are watching what is unfolding in the United States with “horror and consternation” and he paused for 22 seconds when asked about Donald Trump and the use of tear gas against protesters for a photo opportunity.
Mr Trudeau has long been careful not to poke Mr Trump as Canada relies on the US for 75 per cent of exports.
But he dramatically paused and struggled to come up with the right words when asked about the military actions against protesters in the US.
Police violently broke up a peaceful and legal protest by several thousand people in Lafayette Park across from the White House ahead of a speech in the Rose Garden by Mr Trump on Monday evening.
The protesters had gathered following the police killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis a week earlier.
“It is a time for us as Canadians to recognise that we, too, have our challenges, that black Canadians and racialised Canadians face discrimination as a lived reality every single day,” he said.
“We need to be allies in the fight against discrimination. We need to listen. We need to learn. And we need to work hard to fix.”
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