(Washington) The US State Department has asked its embassies in Canada and other Western countries to carefully examine the consequences of “mass migrations”, the latest initiative by the Trump administration to reshape the geopolitics of the historic allies of the United States.
Published at
Updated to
Last week, a memo to embassies ordered diplomats in Ottawa, New Zealand, Australia and Western European countries to report on the human rights and public safety implications of large-scale mass migration, which has been called an “existential threat to Western civilization.”
In a social media post shared Friday by U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, the department said its representatives would “urge governments to take strong action and protect their citizens from the threats posed by mass migration.”
Representatives will also be required to report “policies that punish citizens who oppose continued mass migration and document crimes and human rights violations committed by people of immigrant background,” the department said.
On Monday, a senior State Department official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the United States was not seeking to dictate how other countries should behave, but rather to warn them against the mass importation of people from cultures it describes as “radically different.”
“The fault lies with your leaders”
US President Donald Trump has long criticized European immigration policies, and Vice President JD Vance caused a stir with a speech lambasting European democracies on migration issues and free speech at the Munich Security Conference earlier this year.
Mr. Vance also attacked Canada in a social media post on Friday. He linked what he called the “stagnation of living standards” of Canadians to “immigration madness.”
“And with all due respect to my Canadian friends, whose politics are obsessed with the United States: your stagnant standard of living has nothing to do with Donald Trump or with the scapegoat that Radio-Canada designates for you,” wrote JD Vance. The fault lies with your leaders, whom you yourself elected. »
PHOTO JULIA DEMAREE NIKHINSON, ASSOCIATED PRESS ARCHIVES
Vice President of the United States JD Vance
A senior State Department official acknowledged Monday that the migration situation differs significantly between countries like Australia, New Zealand and Canada and their European allies.
“However, we see a growing tendency among liberal democracies around the world to blindly embrace the globalized discourse on migration,” he said. The idea that it would be enough to massively import people from a different culture — even radically different — and assume that everything will go well is absurd, when case studies have demonstrated the opposite. »
This official indicated that population displacement, pressure on housing and the prospect of a two-tiered justice system, treating migrants differently, were particularly worrying. He mainly discussed European issues, without specifically mentioning Canada.
The message directed embassies to gather information for the U.S. human rights report and to convey that the United States was willing to collaborate on the issue, he added.
Canada has always prided itself on the diversity of its population. But support for significant immigration has collapsed in recent years, partly due to a tight housing market and high unemployment, particularly among young people.
Prime Minister Mark Carney has pledged to “get a grip” on immigration. His Liberal government plans to reduce the number of temporary workers for 2026 and has almost halved the number of study visas planned for the next three years.
The federal government is also reducing the number of refugees, protected persons and people granted permanent residence on humanitarian grounds it will admit in 2026.
Canada’s migration policy is important to the Trump administration, an anonymous official said, adding: “We hope our Canadian friends will be just as strong on this issue.” »
“In Canada, people have expressed very strong concerns about the influx of migrants, just as they have in the United States, and President Trump has decided to answer this call with great courage and boldness,” concluded the official.
Canada’s asylum system was overwhelmed under the first Trump administration when people began migrating north, crossing the Canada-U.S. border by exploiting a loophole in the Safe Third Country Agreement. This loophole allowed those who bypassed official border crossing points to apply for asylum.
This loophole was closed under the Biden administration, leading to a significant drop in the number of people crossing the Canadian border from the United States through unofficial crossings.
