OTTAWA – Prime Minister Mark Carney and Alberta Premier Danielle Smith both said Thursday the United States needs to respect Canadian sovereignty following reports that leaders of the Alberta separatist movement met with American government officials seeking their support. Premier of British Columbia David Eby takes questions after meeting with Canadian premiers at a Council of the Federation meeting in Ottawa on Wednesday, Jan. 28, 2026. Pressed to describe how they viewed those meetings, Smith and Carney did not call them treasonous. “I would expect that the U.S. administration would respect Canadian sovereignty and that they would confine their discussion about Alberta’s democratic process to Albertans and to Canadians,” Smith said. I expect the U.S. administration to respect Canadian sovereignty,” he said.