A Wet’suwet’en hereditary chief says a planned meeting with federal ministers may be delayed after Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s “unfortunate” comments on the rail blockades crippling Canada’s economy.

Chief Na’Moks told Global News Radio CKNW Friday that he and the other four hereditary chiefs opposed to the Coastal GasLink pipeline project were speaking by phone with Crown–Indigenous Relations Minister Carolyn Bennett and Indigenous Services Minister Marc Miller, and had agreed to a meeting set for Monday.

But around the time the chiefs and ministers were speaking, he says Trudeau gave his press conference, in which he called for the blockades to come down.

“It’s put things into a bit of confusion, and it may have even delayed the discussions that we had scheduled for next week,” Na’Moks said.

Trudeau said his government had done its best to end the rail blockades that have been held across the country for two weeks, but the responsibility now lies with Indigenous leaders and with police to seek a peaceful resolution.

He stopped short of ordering RCMP to move in and clear those blockades, while admitting those in Ontario are under the jurisdiction of the Ontario Provincial Police.

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