The European Union is opening the door for Canada to become the bloc’s first associate member, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen announced in Strasbourg, France on Wednesday.
Speaking in her annual state of the European Union address, von der Leyen said the bloc wanted to bring its relationship with Ottawa “to the highest level possible.” Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney, who attended the speech, received a standing ovation from European lawmakers.
“I said we must urgently reimagine our partnerships so I would like to work with you on opening the door for Canada to being the first associate member of the European Union,” von der Leyen said.
The overture follows Ottawa’s push for closer economic and security ties with Europe, driven by U.S. tariffs and President Donald Trump’s repeated talk of making Canada the 51st state. Canada is in a bitter trade war with Washington and has pledged to match Trump’s tariffs dollar for dollar.
Carney had previously called for a “unique alliance” with Europe as Canada seeks to reduce its heavy dependence on U.S. trade.
Von der Leyen said the two sides would build on their existing free trade agreement, known as Ceta, with a broader “alliance for the future” aimed at creating “a common prosperity and economic security space.” She said the expanded partnership would cover advanced manufacturing, technology, defence production, the Arctic, energy, critical minerals, batteries, AI, quantum computing, cybersecurity and economic security.
“This is a partnership not against anyone else, but for our common strength,” she said.
The EU has previously considered associate membership for Ukraine when German Chancellor Friedrich Merz pushed for it earlier in the year. Canada and the EU have separately been advancing digital trade talks in recent months.
“I think this is a big step, indeed,” Berenberg chief economist Holger Schmieding told CNBC, adding that Europe is trying to deepen partnerships with like-minded democracies to reduce its dependence on both the United States and China.
Carney is due to address the European Parliament on Thursday.