Secret meetings between separatists and the Trump administration. The Prime Minister of Canada reacts

“I expect the U.S. administration to respect Canadian sovereignty,” Carney said, adding in the French part of his response: “All the time, without exception.” During a press conference with the prime ministers of Canadian provinces and territories, Carney was asked whether he considered the actions of the US administration to be attempts to influence Canadian policy.

Carney added that he raised the issue in a conversation with U.S. President Donald Trump, and when asked whether Trump had ever broached the topic of Alberta's separation himself, he replied: “no.”

Earlier on Thursday, David Eby, the premier of British Columbia, neighboring Alberta, called the separatists “traitors.” During the press conference, he emphasized that he understood the desire to hold a referendum, “but to go to a foreign country and ask for help to destroy Canada? There is an ancient word for it — and that word is treason.”

And Alberta Premier Danielle Smith, whose conservative UCP party supports Alberta's “sovereignty” efforts, added that she has “always” clearly supported “a strong and sovereign Alberta within a strong Canada.” She blamed previous Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau for separatist sentiments and emphasized that Albertans need to see hope and “that Canada is working.”

Financial Times reports

Canada's prime minister and provincial premiers responded to a Thursday article in the Financial Times (FT) that said Trump administration officials held several secret meetings with leaders of the Alberta Prosperity Project (APP), a group advocating for the province's secession from Canada. These meetings have taken place three times since April 2025, and the next meeting is planned for February. APP leaders intend to apply for a $500 million loan to finance the province's needs in the event of an independence referendum.

Last year such meetings and the loan were reported by, among others, factchecking portal DeSmog and the Canadian magazine TheTyee. Last Friday, US Secretary of the Treasury (Finance Minister) Scott Bessent supported the separatists in Alberta, speaking to the far-right channel Real America's Voice.

A spokesman for the US Department of State, quoted in the FT, stated that his department “regularly meets with representatives of civil society”, but no commitments have been made. A source familiar with Bessent's position told journalists that neither he nor other finance ministry employees knew about the loan proposal and did not intend to discuss it.

Collecting signatures for a petition

APP is currently collecting signatures for a petition for a referendum on the separation of Alberta from Canada. However, earlier, in October last year, over 456 thousand people signed a petition for a referendum on allowing Alberta to remain as a province in Canada. The date of the referendum has not been announced yet.

At the beginning of January, a group of First Nations from Alberta took the government of Alberta to court for enabling APP separatist activities. The Indians reminded that the government of Alberta is bound by the treaties that the Indian nations signed with the British Crown even before the province was established and that without the consent of the Indians it is impossible to secede Alberta from Canada.