Ultimatum (novel)

"Ultimatum" is a 1974 novel by Richard Rohmer with political, economic, energy crisis themes as well as an opinion by the author of the viability of the Canadian nation.

The novel is set in the mid to late 1970s, after a change in government in Canada that has put a new man into the post of prime minister. Whether this change in government is a new leadership in the Liberal Party or a change to the Progressive Conservative Party is not indicated, but the third and fourth parties, New Democratic and Social Credit, are referred to by name, along with fictitious leaders for them and the opposition party.

The United States president is a Texan.

The United States has just endured a particularly difficult winter due to the shortage of natural gas, particularly in the northeast and the Midwest. The president is frustrated that vast reserves of natural gas have been identified in Canada's Arctic Islands by American companies, but cannot be developed because Canada wants first to determine its requirements. In addition, a newly-completed Mackenzie Valley pipeline is not yet operational because someone, possibly aggrieved First Nations people, are bombing it.

The president telephones the Canadian prime minister, outlines the situation, says Canada really should have imitated the Alaskan native settlement of 1971 and come to a final agreement with its own native peoples. The president gives the prime minister an ultimatum: it has 48 hours to give the United States carte blanche access to the natural gas found by American companies, or sanctions will be placed on Canada. Shortly after giving the ultimatum, the president embarks on Air Force One to inspect the natural gas developments in the islands of the high Canadian arctic. His interest is in transport of gas, particularly by aircraft or pipeline.

The prime minister quickly summons his staff and cabinet to make the initial dealings, but the armed forces are used to get all members of Parliament to Ottawa as quickly as possible. A hasty schedule is set for briefings, then a debate and decision. The prime minister also calls upon a former law partner who is a leading resident among the First Nations in the Mackenzie Delta. It turns out this individual is the one who's been setting the bombs. The prime minister persuades him to disarm the latest bombs so as not to antagonize the Americans, but to come to Ottawa himself. The prime minister addresses the nation and invites Canadians to call their local radio or television station to cast a yes or no vote, which will be tallied and sent to Ottawa.

Meanwhile, Air Force One, with two Canadian fighter jets as escort, has passed over Churchill to inspect an impressive deep sea port being built by the Canadian government, and then lands in Resolute. A smaller plane takes the president to a gas development area where two experimental undersea gas pipelines have been installed and are ready for tests. One breaks its anchors, bursts through the sea ice and the president is barely yanked from the jaws of death, but the other experimental model works, showing it will be possible to put a pipeline between islands to reach the mainland.

The president addresses his nation from aboard Air Force One, although it is supposed to look like he's in Washington, and they even use a Canadian Anik satellite to get the signal to Washington.

On the day when the ultimatum is to be answered, the members of the House of Commons and the Senate meet in the House for a briefing by key cabinet members. One issue that is addressed is for Canada to join OPEC. A decision to negotiate a final settlement with the First Nations peoples is made, as well as improved autonomy for the two northern territories. Later in the day, Parliament is convened with a very brief speech from the throne, then the motion covering a response to the ultimatum is placed for debate, is debated, and the Parliamentarians vote to reject the ultimatum and offer an alternative to the United States. The Canadians who phoned in their votes also rejected the ultimatum.

The prime minister phones an angry president to advise him; the president is ready to step up the sanctions he had begun to impose the day before, but realizes how damaging they will be to both countries. He has to resort to an alternative that will spare the two nations that damage, but it means a major change for the Canadian nation.