https://www.businessinsider.com/ukraines-future-in-nato-prec...

edit since I guess the timestamp isn't visible to everyone: Jul 12, 2023, 5:56 PM GMT+2

I believe the terms in human relationships are coercive control and social isolation.

158 Canadian soldiers died defending the United States at the US's request after 9/11. Canadian fighter jets helped to patrol the skies in the US at the US's request after 9/11.

The insults coming from the US Secretary of Defence and President are not unnoticed. They are logged and remembered.

A whole lot of Trump's psychology has always been "it's your fault I hurt you" for the longest time — it's a very clear undercurrent in how he treated his first wife.

He's an abuser. And now so is the USA.

Canada is bound to look for new trade opportunities in the face of that.

You make a deal with Trump, it's always worse than what you had previously.

Then, no mater what you do, he breaks the deal 3 months later with some kind of implied military threat if you complain.

I don't think anyone really says it's an hostile act but both countries, Canada and the US will have to decide what it means for their ongoing relationship.

Canada is free to get closer to Europe and the US is free to be displeased about it.

Maybe it works out well for Canada or maybe it doesn't.

> Makes it all the more obvious that USA is Canada's abusive partner

Why anthropomorphize geopolitics?

This is just just a big fish throwing its weight around like all big fishes do. Russia does it with its neighbors, China does it as well and India and Europe are not shy about it either.

It's just the name of the game and its been happening since the dawn of time.

Some states use force, others bribe or cajole but in the end they all try to influence their neighbors in a way that suits their interests especially if these neighbors are smaller in terms of population/economy/military etc...

The fact that so many people are shocked by such news these days is because everyone drank the cool aid of the End of History and forgot that spheres of influence still exists and that the rule of law was nothing more than gentleman's agreement that could be thrown out of the window at a moment's notice without second thoughts.

Not sure what's meant by that... People won't start swimming over the atlantic ocean. And flights to Canada aren't really cheap, by any means.

Do you think the referendum in question is not a political theater?

I don't know much, but it stands to me that the EU association is magnitudes more serious.

Alberta selling oil to USA is, by itself, like 20% of Canada's entire GDP.

And 70% of all other exports go to USA too. So yeah it is mostly just theater because there's a loud mouth idiot in the White house.

They're doing some lip-service and just hoping it will blow over when Trump is gone.