Canada needs to look after itself, leader says, as US intelligence allies closely watch war plans leak fallout

Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney said Canada must “look out for (itself)” as the fallout over top US officials sharing military operation details inside a popular messaging app reverberates among key intelligence allies and partners.

“It’s a serious, serious issue and all lessons must be taken from any of those, including in this circumstance,” Carney told reporters on a campaign trail stop in Halifax, Nova Scotia Tuesday ahead of the country’s April 28 election.

Canada has long been one of the US’s closest allies, though the relationship has deteriorated in recent months since President Donald Trump threatened to enact sweeping tariffs on Canadian goods and annex the country as the “51st state.”

“We have a very strong intelligence partnership with the Americans through Five Eyes,” Carney said, referring to the intelligence-sharing alliance between Canada, the US, the United Kingdom, Australia and New Zealand.

“Mistakes do happen, but what’s important is how people react to those mistakes and how they tighten them up,” Carney said.

Carney said the likely leak of sensitive military plans by senior US officials means Canadians must “look out for ourselves.”

“My responsibility is to plan for the worst, is to think about the most difficult evolution of the new threat environment, what it means for Canada and how do we best protect Canada,” Carney said. “Part of that response is to be more and more Canadian in our defense capabilities, more and more Canadian in our decisions, to take greater ownership.”

Other Five Eyes allies have been tighter lipped about the apparent intelligence leak.

A spokesperson for British Prime Minister Keir Starmer insisted nothing was awry in the UK-US relationship.

“We have a very close relationship with the US on matters of security, defense and intelligence,” spokesman Dave Pares told the Associated Press. “They are our closest ally when it comes to these matters, have been for many years and will be for many years to come.”

France’s foreign ministry said “the United States is our ally, and France intends to continue its cooperation with Washington, as well as with all its allies and European partners, in order to address current challenges — particularly in the area of European security,” according to the AP.

“Australia and the United States engage regularly on implementation of mutually recognised standards for the protection of classified material,” they said in a statement.

A spokesperson for New Zealand Prime Minister Christopher Luxon declined to comment.