In an effort to weaken Canada, the Trump Administration may be interested in promoting separatist sentiment. In fact, it would be naive to assume this isn’t happening already.
A new row between Denmark and the United States has erupted following reports that three individuals connected to U.S. President Donald Trump are carrying out influence operations in Greenland in an effort to facilitate Trump’s oft-stated goal of taking control of the island:
“Public broadcaster DR said Danish government and security sources which it didn’t name, as well as unidentified sources in Greenland and the U.S., believe that at least three American nationals with connections to Trump have been carrying out covert influence operations in the territory.
One of those people allegedly compiled a list of U.S.-friendly Greenlanders, collected names of people opposed to Trump and got locals to point out cases that could be used to cast Denmark in a bad light in American media. Two others have tried to nurture contacts with politicians, businesspeople and locals, according to the report.”
“DR said its story was based on information from a total of eight sources, who believe the goal is to weaken relations with Denmark from within Greenlandic society. It said it had been unable to clarify whether the Americans were working at their own initiative or on orders from someone else. It said it knows their names but chose not to publish them in order to protect its sources. The Associated Press could not independently confirm the report.”
To say that Denmark – a NATO ally that already lets the U.S. use bases in Greenland – is displeased would be an understatement. Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen noted that the U.S. has not denied the report, and called it a “serious” matter:
“I take note of the fact that the Americans are not clearly denying the information presented by DR today, and of course that is serious,”
“We have made it very clear that this is unacceptable. And it is something we will raise directly with our colleagues in the United States – who, if this were untrue, could very easily dismiss the claims,” Mette Frederiksen said.
Canada must be on guard for similar efforts here
Aside from possessing strategically valuable northern territory, Canada shares something in common with Denmark: The U.S. President has threatened the sovereignty of both nations.
Trump has referred to Canada’s border as an “imaginary line” and has said Canada should become a U.S. state on numerous occasions. He has gone even further with Denmark, refusing to rule out seizing Greenland, an autonomous territory in the Kingdom of Denmark, by force.
Such a move would have massive implications, given that it would amount to an attack on a NATO member and reduce the U.S. to the moral stature of countries like Russia that seek to seize territory through force and violently incorporate that territory into their own nation.
And while this worst-case scenario may have been pre-empted by European nations expressing their support for Denmark’s territorial integrity (and ramping up their military presence in the region), it appears the Trump Administration is trying to take a more subtle approach to undermining Denmark.
We should expect to see the same in Canada.
Some figures on the U.S. right have made no secret of their desire to subsume Alberta and potentially Saskatchewan, viewing those provinces as resource-rich right-wing provinces that could easily be integrated into a pro-Trump America. It should be noted that this view is incorrect, as a majority of Albertans and residents of Saskatchewan/Manitoba expressed support for Democratic candidate and former U.S. Vice President over Donald Trump in the 2024 election. Notably, this survey was taken before Trump’s tariffs and annexation threats, and he has become even less popular in Canada since.
Still, people often take action based upon incorrect information, and the slight rise in Western separatist sentiment in recent years is something that some pro-annexationist Trump supporters in the U.S. would be tempted to take advantage of.
With this in mind, it’s notable that the head of the separatist Republican Party of Alberta is a former U.S. Marine who holds dual U.S.-Canadian citizenship. Davies won 17.66% of the vote in the Olds-Didsbury-Three Hills Alberta Provincial byelection, finishing over 40 points behind the United Conservative Party and trailing the NDP.
Will we see U.S. resources funnelled to separatists in the West? Will we see further attempts to demonize Canada in an effort to create a casus belli for ‘liberation’ among pro-Trump influencers in the U.S.?
Given what’s happening in Greenland, it would be naive to assume similar efforts aren’t already underway in Canada, efforts that are often given an assist by those within Canada who are unwilling to accept election results that go against them and would rather see Canada have Trumpism forced upon the populace than reconcile with the fact that most Canadians don’t want to head in a Trump-style direction in terms of policy and political discourse.
The Canadian government would be wise to take this seriously and direct more funding toward CSIS and the RCMP to track, investigate, and halt potential influence operations. Canadian sovereignty is under strain, and it must be reinforced with a strong national security apparatus, while balancing the important right to free expression.
It is also important for individual Canadians to remain vigilant and call out those who spread narratives that seek to divide and undermine Canada. While people have the right to share such views, those of us who want to ensure Canada endures also have the right – and I would argue the duty – to speak out against such rhetoric.
Spencer Fernando
Image – YouTube
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