OTTAWA: Jean Chretien liked to shoot arrows in the direction of Washington. By his own admission, the Canadian prime minister could have cared less that he “didn’t get any flowers” for his often ironic criticism of US President George Bush.

On Friday, this leader who has distanced Canada from its superpower neighbour retired, one month short of his 70 birthday and 10 years after he became premier. He will hand the reins of power over to a rival in his Liberal Party, Paul Martin.

Martin, a former finance minister from the party’s conservative wing, vowed to behave “much more sensibly” to the United States — the biggest economy of the world and Canada’s chief trading partner — and thereby fulfil demands from the business community.

Relations with Canada’s southern neighbour are not the only way in which the two very different men diverge.

The French-speaking Chretien grew up in a hard-scrabble, working- class town in Quebec while the affluent tycoon Martin, 64, grew up on the English side of Canada’s language divide.

The men have long been political rivals, culminating last year, when Chretien ousted Martin as finance minister after he had plotted to take Chretien’s job.

Chretien was also a major supporter of the Kyoto Protocol, which calls for the reduction of greenhouse gases, but Martin’s statements about the environmental initiative have been ambiguous.

He has also said he wants to cut taxes but has also vowed to cut waiting times for medical procedures in the state-run health programme, improve infrastructure and fight poverty and homelessness.

The incoming premier also has said he wants a grander role for Canada on the world stage.

Chretien himself made headlines in foreign policy with his government’s opposition to the US-led war in Iraq. His stance, which led to Canada’s first refusal of a US request for troops, raised tensions with Washington, and gaffs from Chretien like his statement about Bush, “He’s not a moron, he’s my friend,” didn’t help much either during his tenure, but on Thursday, the premier took a final call from Bush, who he said offered him congratulations on 40 years in public service. Chretien added, “We are still good friends.”—dpa