SINGAPORE: Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney stated on Thursday (Jan 29) that he expects the United States to respect Canadian sovereignty, after reviews that US State Division officers had met an Alberta separatist group a number of occasions over the previous yr.
The purported conferences have renewed consideration on a long-simmering independence motion within the oil-rich Canadian province, and raised questions on whether or not US President Donald Trump could possibly be in search of to take advantage of it.
Whereas the thought of an unbiased Alberta has existed for many years, the motion solely gained traction in recent times, with requires a attainable referendum on the matter.
CNA explains what’s driving Alberta’s separatist push, how lifelike it’s, and what position the Trump administration could also be enjoying.
What’s occurring in Canada?
Based on a Monetary Instances report, US State Division officers have met leaders of the Alberta Prosperity Undertaking (APP) 3 times since April 2025.
The group, which opposes federal insurance policies it says are hostile to Alberta’s vitality sector, is pushing for a referendum on whether or not the western province ought to break free from Canada.
The separatists are additionally in search of conferences with US state and Treasury officers in February to debate a possible US$500 billion credit score facility to assist bankroll Alberta if an independence vote had been to succeed, the report stated, citing folks acquainted with the talks.
“The US is extraordinarily enthusiastic a few free and unbiased Alberta,” APP’s authorized counsel instructed the Monetary Instances.
No referendum has been referred to as to this point. Organisers should first gather about 177,000 signatures by Might 2 – of which 10 per cent have to be eligible voters from the final provincial election – to set off a vote.
Carney stated on Thursday that he expects the US administration to respect his nation’s sovereignty.
“I am at all times clear in my conversations with President Trump to that impact,” Carney stated, including that the US president had by no means raised the query of Alberta separatism with him.
Why do the separatists need independence?
Alberta is Canada’s largest producer of oil and gasoline and a serious driver of financial progress. In 2024, it ranked second solely to Ontario in its contribution to nationwide GDP progress, based on Time Journal.
However tensions between Alberta and Ottawa have grown in recent times, significantly over local weather and vitality insurance policies.
Former prime minister Justin Trudeau’s push for emissions reductions and carbon pricing clashed with Alberta’s fossil-fuel-driven financial system, fuelling long-standing grievances that the province is unfairly constrained by federal decision-making.
An Ipsos survey performed in January discovered that about 29 per cent of Albertan residents would “vote for his or her province to start the method of separating from Canada and in search of a brand new settlement to outline its future relationship with the nation”.
About 55 per cent of these supporting independence stated this was as a result of the province has “traditionally been mistreated” inside Canada.
“Alberta has for a very long time had very low taxes and has subsidised the remainder of Canada with oil wealth,” stated Stephen Saideman, Paterson Chair in Worldwide Affairs from Carleton College’s Norman Paterson Faculty of Worldwide Affairs.
“However with local weather change presenting a larger … risk to the world and significantly to Canada, there have been some discussions on the way to regulate oil, the way to minimise carbon emissions,” he instructed CNA on Friday.
Apart from these frustrations, one other issue could also be Canada’s current political historical past, stated Dr Saideman.
Alberta tends to vote extra conservatively than the remainder of Canada, and the nation has been ruled by Liberal prime ministers similar to Trudeau and Carney for round 10 years.
