President Donald Trump says that Canada is considering his offer of becoming the 51^st state in exchange for free protection from the “golden dome” missile defense system he wants to build.

“I told Canada, which very much wants to be part of our fabulous Golden Dome System, that it will cost $61 Billion Dollars if they remain a separate, but unequal, Nation, but will cost ZERO DOLLARS if they become our cherished 51st State,” the president said on his Truth Social account.

“They are considering the offer!” he said.

On Tuesday, King Charles, who is recognized as the sovereign of Canada, spoke to the Canadian Parliament, in which he appeared to nix the idea of Canada ever becoming a state.

“Canadians can give themselves far more than any foreign power on any continent can ever take away,” the royal said.

“And that, by staying true to Canadian values, Canada can build new alliances and a new economy that serves all Canadians,” he said.

Trump said last week that the golden dome should be operational within three years for a cost of around $175 billion.

“In the campaign, I promised the American people that I would build a cutting-edge missile defense shield to protect our homeland from the threat of foreign missile attacks. And that’s what we’re doing,” the president said from the Oval Office.

“Today I’m pleased to announce we have officially selected an architecture for this state-of-the-art system that will deploy next-generation technologies across land, sea, and space—including space-based interceptors,” he said.

“Canada has called us. They want to be part of it. We’ll be talking to them. They want to have protection also. So, as usual, we help Canada the best we can. This design for the Golden Dome will integrate the existing defense capabilities. It should be fully operational before the end of my term—we’ll have it done in about three years,” he said.