U.S. admiral compares military action against Canada to fighting extraterrestrials

Advertisement 1 This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. Breadcrumb Trail Links HomeNewsCanada U.S. admiral compares military action against Canada to fighting extraterrestrials Calling a hypothetical question 'preposterous,' Admiral Samuel J. Paparo replies: 'Would you ask me please, also, what my attack plans are for the Martians?' Author of the article: By Chris Knight Published Sep 02, 2026 Last updated 19 hours ago 2 minute read Join the conversation Chief of the Defence Staff Gen. Jennie Carignan and Commander of U.S. Pacific Command, Admiral Samuel J. Paparo take questions from reporters Sept. 2 at a conference on Indo-Pacific security.  PHOTO BY DAVID PUGLIESE Article content A question to a U.S. admiral about the possibility of military action against Canada was met with incredulity from the military leader, who called it “preposterous” and added: “Would you ask me please, also, what my attack plans are for the Martians?” Article content Gen. Jennie Carignan, Canada’s chief of the defence staff, and Admiral Samuel J. Paparo, commander of the U.S. Pacific Command, were holding a joint news conference on Wednesday as the three-day annual Indo-Pacific Chiefs of Defence conference came to a close. Article content Article content Most of the questions dealt with cooperation between Canada and U.S. military forces and the upcoming decision about the potential purchase of F-35 fighter jets, as well as issues both countries face in the western Pacific region. Article content However, midway through the event, a reporter asked, “With all due respect, under what circumstances would you obey an order to launch military action against Canada?” Article content Article content Article content Paparo looked flustered and stammered for several seconds before replying: “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,” before concluding that “Canada is a close ally.” Article content NP Posted Get a dash of perspective along with the trending news of the day in a very readable format. Sign Up By signing up you consent to receive the above newsletter from Postmedia Network Inc. Interested in more newsletters? Browse here. Article content The reporter replied: “You didn’t answer the question.” Article content Paparo started to repeat his earlier remarks before adding: “Would you ask me please,…