In a series of discreet encounters, leading figures from the Trump administration have been engaging with leaders of a Canadian separatist movement intent on establishing an independent state within Canada’s oil-rich territories. These clandestine discussions have been unfolding quietly since last spring.

The backdrop to these meetings is a strained relationship between President Donald Trump and Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney. Recent developments have further complicated this dynamic, as Carney has taken steps to enhance Canada’s trade ties with China, causing concern in Washington.

As part of this diplomatic shift, Canada and China have agreed to reduce tariffs on Canadian canola oil and allowed the entry of some Chinese-manufactured electric vehicles into the Canadian market at significantly reduced tax rates.

Jeff Rath, who leads the Alberta Prosperity Project—a movement advocating for the independence of Alberta—has claimed to possess a “much stronger relationship” with the Trump administration compared to Carney, according to a report by the Financial Times.

Insiders have disclosed that representatives from the Alberta Prosperity Project have already met with State Department officials in Washington on at least three occasions since April 2025, underscoring the depth of these ongoing interactions.

Top officials from the Alberta Prosperity Project have convened with State Department officials in Washington at least three times since April 2025, sources revealed to the FT.

‘The US is extremely enthusiastic about a free and independent Alberta,’ Rath, who sat in on the meetings, has said. 

However, US officials have been quick to downplay the meetings, noting that no commitments have been made to the group. 

Trump and Carney’s relationship soured over the weekend after Ottawa and Beijing announced a trade deal on Chinese electric vehicles and Canadian canola oil. Trump soon threatened to raise tariff rates on Canada

Jeff Rath, the leader of the Alberta Prosperity Project, a group pushing for the western province to become independent, has met multiple times with State Department officials about an independent Alberta 

Alberta is Canada’s energy capital, responsible for around 85 percent of the nation’s oil production

‘The department regularly meets with civil society types. As is typical in routine meetings such as these, no commitments were made,’ a State Department spokesperson said. 

The White House similarly highlighted that no deal has been struck. 

‘Administration officials meet with a number of civil society groups. No such support, or any other commitments, was conveyed,’ a White House official told the outlet. 

The Alberta Prosperity Project is reportedly seeking a meeting as soon as next month with US Treasury Department officials. 

They plan on asking for $500 billion in credit to help fund the province if a yet to be called referendum results in the province’s independence. 

The group needs 177,000 signatures to bring an independence petition to the legislature by May. It has not said how many it has attained thus far. 

Coming at a tense moment between Trump and Carney, the president has made known is unease with Ottawa and Beijing deepening ties.  

‘If Governor Carney thinks he is going to make Canada a drop off port for China to send goods and products into the United States he is sorely mistaken,’ Trump wrote on Truth Social on Saturday. 

An attendee wears an Alberta flag during the Alberta Independence Town Hall event in Calgary, Alberta, Canada, on Monday, Jan. 26, 2026. A petition has been started by separatist activists in Alberta for a referendum on independence from Canada, driven in part by a belief that the government in Ottawa hasn’t done enough to accelerate projects to expand oil production, such as new pipelines.

Leaders of the Alberta Prosperity Project are seeking meetings with the US Treasury Department to secure $500 billion in credit financing

‘If Canada makes a deal with China, it will immediately be hit with a 100 percent tariffs against all Canadian goods and products,’ the president threatened.

Carney was quick to clarify on Sunday that any deal with China would have to go through proper channels under its trade deal with the US and Mexico, called USMCA. 

Part of that deal restricts which non-market economies can sign deals with the North American countries. Any deal that Canada wishes to strike must first be notified to the US and Mexico. 

‘We have no intention of doing that with China or any other non-market economy,’ Carney said Sunday.