U.S. Admiral Samuel J. Paparo declined to say under what circumstances he would follow an order to attack Canada, calling a question from a reporter about the issue “needlessly emotional.”
At the Indo-Pacific Chiefs of Defence conference in Victoria Wednesday, a reporter asked Paparo: “Under what circumstances would you obey an order to launch military action against Canada?”
Paparo, who serves as U.S. commander for the Indo-Pacific region, visibly took issue with the question. He said: “I find that scenario to be absolutely and utterly preposterous.”
He added: “I follow the orders of the commander-in-chief, but that is a needlessly emotional question.”
The reporter pointed out that Paparo did not answer the question. The U.S. admiral said he was dismissing the issue, adding: “Would you ask me please also what my attack plans are for the Martians?”
The reporter replied: “You belittle it and I don’t think that’s the right approach at all. This is a serious question about a serious issue.”
U.S. President Donald Trump has repeatedly threatened to turn Canada into the “51st” American state since returning to office in January 2025.
The Canadian military has taken the threats seriously enough to model a response to a hypothetical U.S. invasion, according to senior government officials who spoke to the Globe and Mail this year.
A Nanos poll taken in February found that three in five Canadians are concerned about the U.S. being a potential threat to Canadian sovereignty. A majority also support making it illegal for Canadians to serve in the U.S. military, according to a poll commissioned by The Maple in April.
Alex Cosh
Despite Trump’s threats, however, Canadian government ministers have continued to stress Canada’s continued cooperation with the Americans on military affairs.
In July, Defence Minister David McGuinty said: “On the security and intelligence and defence front, from our perspective, there’s really little daylight. We continue to work together continentally. We work domestically and we work internationally at the NATO level.”
He added: “We trust each other. We work together. That will not stop in my view. I don’t think it can stop for Canadians.”
Alex Cosh
McGuinty’s comments came as the U.S. was waging its ongoing war of aggression against Iran and after it conducted an illegal kidnapping of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro in January.
The U.S. has also imposed a brutal oil blockade on Cuba aimed at forcing regime change there, and recently hosted a forum, which Canada attended, urging U.S. allies to treat left-wing “extremism” as a top national security threat.
