Mark Carney, the Canadian Prime Minister, has warned that the United States is trying to undermine Canada and increase its power over the country. Mr Carney is trying to retain oil-rich Alberta in the Canadian federation before a key secession referendum.
Speaking at a pro-Canada demonstration in Calgary on Thursday, October 15, Carney warned that the world had grown more dangerous and divided and that forces outside Canada were trying to break the country apart so they could control it.
“Some outside our borders are trying to break us so that they can own us,” Carney told supporters, the Associated Press reported. He did not name the United States specifically in that speech but his warning came as relations with Washington have been strained with President Donald Trump’s trade war and his frequent threats about making Canada the 51st U.S. state.
Carney asked Albertans not to use the vote to send a political message to the federal government, warning that pursuing separation might bring years of instability and deepen divisions within the country.
Monday’s referendum on Oct. 19 won’t instantly determine if Alberta becomes independent. Instead, voters will be asked if the province government should start the legal procedure to hold a future binding referendum on separation.
Alberta Premier Danielle Smith, who opposes secession and has indicated she wants the province to stay part of Canada, called the vote. But she has recognised there is broad anger among Albertans with federal policy, especially when it concerns the oil and gas sector.
Supporters of independence believe that Alberta contributes too much to the national economy, and that federal policies have stifled the province’s economic potential. They consider the referendum as a means of pressuring for change in Ottawa, even if it does not result in independence.
Carney, who grew up in Alberta, has tried to address some of those issues by encouraging energy development and supporting a proposed pipeline to Canada’s Pacific coast. He has said lowering the country’s economic dependence on the United States would make Canada stronger and generate chances for Alberta.
The separatist movement has also attracted attention because of fears about possible foreign involvement. Canadian media have reported contacts between US political operators and organisers of Alberta separatism, while charges about the nature and degree of any support have been contested.
A vote to initiate the secession process would not automatically make Alberta independent. In Canada, a separation would need discussions and a constitutional revision, and Indigenous rights and treaty responsibilities would also have to be dealt with.
The vote comes at a difficult period for Canada, with economic tensions with the United States adding to long-standing debates over energy policy, federal authority and the division of national revenues.
Carney’s campaign is part of his effort to define Canadian unity as an economic and security issue. However, the result of the referendum and whether it would lead to a formal independence vote is still unclear.
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