Prime Minister Mark Carney says a “deeper partnership” between Canada and Europe is necessary to hedge against great powers encroaching on the sovereignty of smaller nations.
Carney is delivering a speech to the European Parliament calling for an “alliance of the future” between Canada and the 27 countries that make up the European Union.
“Together, Canada and the European Union can anchor our ground to hold our values while forming a protective canopy under which our citizens can thrive,” a copy of his prepared remarks says.
“This is about sovereignty. Our ability to live as we wish. It is about the freedoms we must fight for, every day. Sovereignty requires resilience — the ability to withstand shocks.”
Carney has been trying to forge closer ties with Europe amid Canada’s ongoing trade war with the United States.
The prime minister nodded to U.S. President Donald Trump’s tactics in his speech, saying economic integration has been used as leverage and suggesting that Europe can be a more reliable ally.
“We are not fair-weather allies. We do not pursue zero-sum deals,” Carney said. “We hold common values, for which we have always fought, and in whose defence we must always remain vigilant.”
Over the last year, Canada has signed several new partnership agreements with the EU. It was also the first non-European country to become a member of Security Action for Europe (SAFE), which provides €150 billion in loans for defence spending.
WATCH | EU chief talks about Canada in her state of the European Union address:
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, after highlighting the shifting international order in her state of the European Union address, spoke of the potential of the Canada-Europe relationship. ‘This is not a partnership against anyone else, but for our common strength.’
Carney’s speech comes after European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said in her state of the European Union address on Wednesday that the door is open for Canada to become an “associate member” of the bloc.
“I would like to work with you on opening the door for Canada to be the first associate member of the EU,” von der Leyen said, drawing a standing ovation.
Carney then nodded, rose from his seat, approached von der Leyen and embraced her. He briefly waved to the chamber before returning to his seat.
The EU chief said the two must “urgently reimagine” their partnership, and move beyond just a free trade agreement.
Carney said he welcomes “the ambition” of that proposal, according to the prepared remarks. But he has preferred to use a different term, calling it an “alliance for the future.”
“Canada and Europe should secure our strategic autonomy through deep cooperation in the full range of strategic capabilities,” the remarks say.
Carney and his team have been downplaying the idea of using “associate member” to describe a new partnership since it was first floated in a story in the Wall Street Journal last week that cited unidentified sources.
The prime minister said Sunday that Canada was “not looking to become a member” of the EU, a point reiterated by Jonathan Wilkinson, Canada’s incoming EU ambassador, on Wednesday following von der Leyen’s speech.
WATCH | Ambassador focused on ‘results’ in deepened EU alliance:
Jonathan Wilkinson, Canada’s incoming ambassador to the European Union, says ‘we’re not there’ after European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen offered to open the door to associate membership. ‘What we’re focused on is actually driving results,’ he said, adding the government will ‘eventually’ turn to how to describe the relationship.
“There are a bunch of different things people have used to describe what this [new relationship] could be. I think we’ve actually got to get to the point where we actually know what we’re describing,” Wilkinson told reporters following von der Leyen’s address.
“It’s nomenclature; I mean, at the end of the day, there’s lots of different ways you could describe it.”
Carney had a meeting with von der Leyen on Wednesday and the two discussed sectors where both leaders feel they can deepen ties, according to a readout from the Prime Minister’s Office. Those sectors include critical minerals, AI, defence, energy and finance.
