Canada and other countries should not give up on doing business with the United States, the country's new ambassador to Canada and former ambassador to the United Nations said Friday at the B7 summit conference in Ottawa.

U.S. Ambassador to Canada Pete Hoekstra told the audience of major business and political figures that the U.S. is "open for business" — even as President Donald Trump digs in on his claim that he will not lift tariffs on Canada, and after he told Prime Minister Mark Carney there was nothing he could say to change that.

"America is open to doing business. We're open to doing business with you, our friends," Hoekstra said.

The ambassador also claimed the president is moving at a rapid pace on his agenda. "We have never experienced anything like this in American politics," he said.

The B7 is a partner conference to the G7 summit happening in Alberta next month.

'This too shall pass': Haley

Nikki Haley, Trump's former rival for the Republican presidential nomination, was also among the key speakers at the event, where business leaders and diplomats assembled to chart a way through global trade uncertainty.

Her comments come as Trump stokes instability in the global trade order through tariffs, forcing some businesses to reorient their supply chains away from the American market.

"Don't assume that the U.S. doesn't want to do business with your country," said Haley, a former state governor and U.S. ambassador to the United Nations. "They actually do want to do business with your country. It's just messy right now."

Haley compared the current trade environment with the United States to "growing pains" and said "this too shall pass."

She took part in a panel discussion Friday morning on how business leaders can build trust in an increasingly fractured world.

She said that while all businesses should have a "24-hour rule" encouraging them to pause before reacting to major geopolitical shifts, she joked that it should be a "72-hour rule" for those in the U.S. right now.

Haley otherwise avoided commenting directly on Trump, who defeated her for the Republican nomination in 2024. Haley, who was Trump's ambassador to the United Nations during his first presidency, was not given a position in his second administration.

Trump has repeatedly insisted the United States needs nothing from Canada, though Canada is a significant source for the U.S. for multiple key products, including energy and critical minerals.