European Union Invites Canada to Become Its First-Ever Associate Member

Key facts

• European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen invited Canada to become the first-ever 'associate member' of the European Union (EU), speaking alongside Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney at the European Parliament in Strasbourg on Wednesday.
• Prime Minister Mark Carney has called for a unique alliance with the EU as Canada seeks to reduce its heavy dependence on US trade, and the EU and Canada are due to hold a summit in late October to develop their future relationship.
• The existing EU-Canada trade deal will be upgraded to an 'alliance for the future' to create a common prosperity and economic security space, alongside a tech alliance, integrated defence industrial bases and the Arctic as a flagship joint project.
• Von der Leyen proposed joint work on energy, critical minerals, batteries, AI, quantum computing, cybersecurity and economic security, with EU officials especially interested in Canada's energy and natural resources.
• The 27-member EU has never previously had an associate membership category, although it has close ties with Norway, Iceland and Switzerland allowing deep economic integration.
• Ten EU member states have still not ratified Ceta, the EU-Canada trade agreement that was agreed 10 years ago.
• Last month, Carney broke off trade talks with the US and introduced retaliatory tariffs on billions worth of US goods, while the EU accepted 15% tariffs on many European goods and dropped its own duties to avoid a trade war.
• Canadian Conservative leader Pierre Poilievre opposed the move, saying Canada would never be the 51st American state or the 28th state of the European Union.