In a development roiling Canada-U.S. relations, officials tied to the Trump administration held multiple meetings with the Alberta Prosperity Project — a separatist-leaning group pushing for Alberta to break away from Canada — in Washington, D.C., from April 2025 through January 2026.
The APP leaders have been advocating for Alberta’s independence, calling for a referendum and even discussing potential economic frameworks if the province were to secede. While U.S. officials acknowledge the meetings, they insist no government endorsement or support for secession was offered.
Back in Canada, the reaction was fierce. British Columbia Premier David Eby condemned the talks as “treason,” while Ontario Premier Doug Ford labeled them “unethical.” Prime Minister Mark Carney stressed that the United States must respect Canadian sovereignty.
The Hill continues:
“To go to a foreign country and to ask for assistance in breaking up Canada, there’s an old-fashioned word for that. And that word is treason,” Eby told reporters in Ottawa, when told of the Times report.
The White House did not deny the meetings but said in a statement to The Hill that “administration officials meet with a number of civil society groups. No support or commitments were conveyed.”
The State Department and the APP did not immediately return a request for comment.
The reported meetings come amid a widening rift between the U.S. and Canada, with President Trump repeatedly disparaging America’s northern neighbor and its independence, saying it should become the 51st U.S. state. Trump has also imposed tariffs on Canada and threatened more.
Trump went after Prime Minister Carney last week after Carney delivered a high-profile Davos speech warning of a “rupture” in the U.S.-led global order.
Speaking at the World Economic Forum himself, Trump bluntly claimed Canada survives because of the United States — and issued a pointed warning for Carney to remember that the next time he criticizes Washington.
Alberta Premier Danielle Smith, though sympathetic to some regional frustrations, does not support full independence. There is no evidence that the U.S. government has pledged financial backing or recognition of an independent Alberta, and Canada remains constitutionally intact.
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How about trading? We can have Alberta, Saskatchewan, maybe Quebec for Minnesota with possibly a state to be named later.
How would a “new Canada” live without all the socialism of Canada in an American government?
Offer the canucks a straight up trade for crapifornia!