An idea that is not new
Donald Trump is far from being the first American to raise the idea of conquering Canada. As early as 1775, in the midst of the American Revolution, the army took control of Montreal for several months. Its progress will be interrupted at the gates of Quebec, when the American general Richard Montgomery is killed at the gates of Quebec on December 31, 1776. However, it will still take almost six months before the occupation of Montreal ends.
What followed was the Anglo-American War of 1812, pitting the United States against the United Kingdom, which still controlled the colonies of Lower Canada and Upper Canada. The conflict lasted almost three years, and ended without the borders between the two powers moving a bit.
Canadians in favor of annexation
The idea of “getting rid of the line” drawn between Canada and the United States, as Trump mentioned at the beginning of January, also had followers on our side of the border in the 19th century. After the Anglo-American War, Montreal businessmen like Louis-Joseph Papineau and John Molson campaigned in favor of the annexation of Canada by the United States.
A Canadian decision
For the scenario to materialize today, several conditions would have to be met. First, the decision to make Canada the 51st American state must first come… from Canadians.
This project would require unanimous agreement from the provinces and a national referendum to modify the Canadian Constitution. If a single province wanted to join the United States, it would first have to officially separate from the Canadian federation.
A vote of Congress
On the American side, the process for creating a new state is simpler: it only requires a vote by the American Congress, as outlined in Article 4 of the American Constitution.
-The document specifies, however, that the annexation must be done with the consent of the territory concerned – Canada in this case.
To become an American state, Canada would also have to abandon the British monarchy and adopt the republican model.
Conquer by force?
If Donald Trump intends to use “economic force” to annex Canada, it is quite different for Greenland and the Panama Canal, which the president-elect promised to seize, at all costs.
Except that international law leaves no room for doubt on this subject: the annexation is illegal. This is a crime of aggression, according to the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court.
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