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A senior White House official proposed to expel Canada from the Five Eyes Intelligence sharing network while Donald Trump increases pressure on the country where he talks about transforming himself into a 51st American condition.
Peter Navarro, one of the American presidents closest advisersPress for the United States to withdraw Canada from the five eyes-which also includes the United Kingdom, Australia and New Zealand-according to people familiar with its efforts inside the administration.
Trump said he wanted to annex Canada And promised to advance the 25% prices on imports of the country when a stay of a month passed on March 4.
The Prime Minister of Canada Justin Trudeau, who will withdraw from his duties on March 9, was recently taken for an open microphone warning that Trump’s ambition absorb the north of the United States was a “real thing” .
Navarro did not respond to requests for comments. The White House did not respond to a request for comments. Trudeau’s office refused to comment.
Trump amazed the American allies when he made Canada his first major target for prices, alongside Mexico, saying that Ottawa was not doing enough to prevent migrants and drugs from entering the United States.
People familiar with the situation said Navarro, who has easy access to the Oval Office because of its close relationship with Trump, argues that the United States should increase pressure on Canada by expelling the country of five eyes.
We do not know if the idea has gained ground with Trump, but it is discussed among its officials.
The five eyes have been the most important intelligence sharing network in the world for decades. The United States and its allies share extremely sensitive signals and human intelligence in addition to coordinating operations. THE CIA pine satellite station In central Australia, which is the most important site for collecting information on China, is only an example of the intimate intelligence relationship.
Dennis Wilder, a former CIA official who was the best editor in chief of the American president’s daily briefing, said the five eyes were “by far the most successful intelligence sharing agreement in the history of the world” . He noted that the partnership emerged when American and British code breakers worked together to break German secret communications during the Second World War and were extended to include other allies in 1956.
“Any disturbance of these old -fashioned understanding would be greeted by the cheers of our opponents to Moscow, Beijing, Tehran and Pyongyang,” said Wilder.
While Canada and New Zealand provide the least intelligence in the group, to expel any member would arouse criticism from other allies and also intelligence managers in Washington and beyond.
An intelligence official of the five eyes said that the escape of Canada of the network of several decades would be very dangerous.
“Sitting where I sit and looking at the range of threats that come to us, we need all the partners we can get,” said the intelligence manager.
Steve Bannon, the former white house strategist who helped Trump win in 2016, said Canada should realize that Trump did not hang Trudeau but was serious want to annex the country.
He said Canada did not have the resources to defend itself, especially when China is trying to become an arctic power. But he said that any decision to expel Canada from the five eyes would be a counterproductive decision that would eventually injure America.
“Canada strikes well above their weight. If you look at military history, they have been the best allies we had, “said Bannon.
Navarro was a sales advisor to the White House in the first Trump administration. Last year, he served for several months in prison to refuse to testify Before the Congress Committee, which took over the attack on January 6, 2021 against the American Capitol. His opinions on trade have long been synchronized with Trump, who sometimes calls him “my Peter” and appointed it in December as a main advisor for trade and manufacturing.
The Canadian Security Intelligence was approached for comments.
Additional reports by Ilya Gridneff in Toronto
