Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and wife Sophie to separate

Toronto: Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and his wife, Sophie Gregoire Trudeau, have announced that they are separating after 18 years of marriage.

The two said in statements posted on Instagram on Wednesday (Toronto time) that they had made the decision after “many meaningful and difficult conversations”.

A statement from the prime minister’s office said both had signed a legal separation agreement.

The couple were married in 2005. They have three children: Xavier,15, Ella-Grace, 14 and Hadrien, 9.

“They remain a close family and Sophie and the prime minister are focused on raising their kids in a safe, loving and collaborative environment,” the statement from his office said. “The family will be together on vacation, beginning next week.”

His office requested respect for their privacy.

Trudeau is the second Canadian prime minister to announce a separation while in office.

His father, Pierre Trudeau, separated from wife Margaret in 1979, and the two divorced in 1984.

Justin Trudeau channelled the star power of his Liberal icon father when he first won office in 2015. Scandals, voter fatigue and economic inflation have taken a toll on his popularity after eight years in power.

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and his wife Sophie Gregoire Trudeau during the G7 Summit in Charlevoix, Canada in 2018.Credit: AP

A former reporter

Gregoire Trudeau, an advocate for gender equality who studied commerce at university, was working as a reporter when she met Trudeau in 2003.

Trudeau was only 43 when he became prime minister in late 2015 and the sharply dressed couple quickly captured the attention of the world media.

In October 2015, the New York Post dubbed her “the hottest first lady in the world”.

Vogue magazine ran a glowing profile of the two in its January 2016 issue, complete with photos of them embracing. A long piece in the magazine about Trudeau said he “shocks some with his public displays of affection toward his wife”.

Trudeau stands with his wife Sophie Gregoire after becoming prime minister in 2015.Credit: AP

In the early years after Trudeau took office, he and Sophie were often seen together at social functions and on foreign trips. In February 2018, during a visit to India, the two of them dressed in colourful costumes most days, prompting derisive comments back home.

Trudeau, though, made clear even before he became prime minister that the two had faced challenges, writing in his autobiography Common Ground in 2014 that “our marriage isn’t perfect, and we have had difficult ups and downs”.

In recent years, Sophie has curtailed joint appearances with her husband and signs of stress were clear.

On their wedding anniversary last year, she said in a social media post that “we have navigated through sunny days, heavy storms, and everything in between and it ain’t over”.

She went on: “long-term relationships are challenging in so many ways”.

The pair travelled to London in May for the coronation of King Charles and were together when US President Joe Biden visited Canada in late March.

As recently as Monday, Trudeau was still wearing his wedding ring.

AP, Reuters

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