Canadian prime minister: I'm prepared to work with a President Trump or Cruz

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said Thursday that he's prepared to work with GOP frontrunner Donald Trump or Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas should either of them be elected president in the fall.

"I have tremendous confidence in the American people and look forward to working with whomever they choose to send to this White House later this year," Trudeau said at a press confidence.

Trudeau, standing next to US President Barack Obama, was responding to a question as to how the US-Canadian relationship would be affected if a hard-liner like Trump or Cruz were elected president.

The left-leaning Trudeau stressed that Canada's relationship with the US went beyond the personalities of the two countries' leaders.

"One of the things that is abundantly clear whenever a president and prime minister sit down to engage on important issues of relevance to our peoples is that the relationship - the friendship - between our two countries goes far beyond two any individuals or any ideologies," he said.

Earlier this week, Trudeau joked that he'd warmly welcome any Americans who wanted to flee the country if Trump becomes president, the Huffington Post reported.

"Cape Breton is lovely, all times of the year," he laughingly said.

The quip was in reference to a viral website that pushes Americans to seek refuge on the small island off Canada's Atlantic coast in the event of a Trump presidency.

"I'm not going to pick a fight with Donald Trump right now," he said. "But I'm not going to support him either, obviously."