Issued on: 01/05/2026 - FRANCE24
12:00 min From the show
In Canada's oil heartland of Alberta, separatism is no longer just a slogan. An unprecedented movement of independence supporters, aided by a reform from the western province's conservative government, has just cleared the way for a referendum to be held on October 19. This is a first in Canada since Quebec's failed independence referendum in 1995.
The Alberta Prosperity Project, a movement led by lawyer Jeffrey Rath, nurtures an old resentment: that of a western, resource-rich Canada "despised" by the ruling elite in Ottawa. One third of those surveyed across the province's population are in favour of the referendum.
As they launch their final campaign for the "Yes" side, the separatists face numerous obstacles: unprecedented federal pushback in favour of the "No" campaign and a series of lawsuits from the province's First Nations communities, who denounce foreign interference from Washington and accuse the separatists of "treason".
US-Canada relations cool at the border over Trump's tariffs and threats
The shadow of the US's MAGA movement looms large over this oil-rich area of Canada dubbed "North Texas", where many oilers and ranchers hope to turn the territory – home to the world's third-largest proven oil reserves – into an independent state.
US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent welcomed the separatist initiative back in January, but Rath insists he's not funded by the MAGA movement.
FRANCE 24's François Rihouay and Joanne Profeta report.
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