U.S. Officials Held Multiple Meetings With Alberta Separatists as Canada Tensions Escalate (Photo: The White House / Gabriel B Kotico)Senior officials in the Trump administration held multiple meetings in Washington with leaders of a Canadian separatist group seeking to split Alberta from the rest of Canada, according to the Financial Times, injecting new friction into already strained U.S.-Canada relations. The meetings come as President Donald Trump's trade, defense and foreign-policy moves have unsettled Ottawa, while Canadian separatists attempt to leverage cross-border tensions to advance their cause. "The U.S. is extremely enthusiastic about a free and independent Alberta," Rath told the Financial Times. People familiar with Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent's views told the Financial Times that his team was unaware of any credit request and did not intend to engage on it. Against that backdrop, Carney in Davos argued the Western "rules-based order" was fracturing, urging smaller nations to reconsider a system he said was partly built on "convenient lies," as Washington's engagement with Alberta separatists adds another layer of unease to the relationship.