European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen has laid out her vision for what an “associate membership” status for Canada to the EU would look like as officials gather in Montreal to discuss closer ties.
It is “a partnership that comes close to membership than anything we have done before,” she said on Thursday’s remarks at the two-day Canada-EU summit.
She added it is a type of relationship that would be open “only to our closest partners outside of Europe who are ready to open a new frontier together.”
It includes close alignment on governance and policies, and partnering in research and innovation.
For decades, Canada-EU summits took place without much fanfare – but that’s not the case for this year’s meeting in the Canadian city.
Thursday and Friday’s summit is being closely watched for details on how Canada and the European bloc deepen their ties.
Von der Leyen first proposed “opening the door” to Canada last month for what she called an “associate membership” – a status that does not currently exist.
The overture came after Prime Minister Carney addressed the European Parliament in Strasbourg, telling EU lawmakers that Canada and Europe were “stronger together” in the face of “geopolitical rupture”.
Carney and many EU member states welcome closer ties, but not all are on board with what to call this new relationship.
Some, like Germany, are questioning the “associate member” term, fearing that Canada is getting preferential treatment ahead of other nations who also want in.
According to reports by multiple news outlets, Germany and other nations successfully lobbied to remove mention of the title in a draft statement ahead of the summit, opting instead for softer language that references an “ever closer association”.
Germany’s ambassador to Canada, Matthias Lüttenberg, told CTV News on Tuesday that some member states were “a little surprised” by von der Leyen’s announcement last month.
While there is broad support for closer ties, the concept of “associate membership” is something that is not clearly understood as it pertains to Canada, he said.
“Germany has been using the term of associate membership for something completely different, which is the relationship of the EU to Ukraine and potentially Moldova”, he said, both of which have been trying to join the bloc for many years.
Despite some opposition, von der Leyen has continued to use the term has not addressed the disagreement over the term.
Later on Thursday, Carney and von der Leyen and business leaders from both Europe and Canada will gather for a business forum.
Canadian officials said they also expect agreements to be hammered out on defence, critical minerals, research and trade over the two days.
Speaking to reporters earlier this week, European officials downplayed the possibility of a major announcement on Canada’s new relationship with EU, saying much will be sorted in the coming months.
But both Canadian and EU officials have provided some clues on what the relationship could look like, including closer business ties and allowing more students to study on either side of the Atlantic.
Canada also does not plan on paying a membership fee similar to other EU nations, Canadian officials have said. Instead, it is looking at participating in different EU programmes that would benefit both Canada and member states.
And despite some disagreement about the wording, both have signalled they are fully on board with deepening ties.
“The wording is emblematic of the ambition,” said one senior Canadian official who was granted anonymity to speak to reporters at a briefing ahead of the summit.
Polls show the majority of Canadians support forging closer ties to Europe, though the Conservative opposition in Canada has criticised the effort as a distraction from other issues, like the high cost of living.
“No one’s mortgage or grocery bill will come down,” said Conservative leader Pierre Poilievre in a statement, adding that Canada already has a free trade pact with the EU.
Since taking office last year, Prime Minister Carney has pushed Canada closer to Europe as his country continues to deal with an ongoing trade war with the US, its neighbour and largest trading customer.
US President Donald Trump has called the idea of Canada becoming an associate member of the EU “laughable”, and has threatened “very serious tariffs” on Europe if he considered it a “hostile act”.
Canadian officials stressed on Wednesday that their pivot to Europe is not meant to offend anybody, but rather to build on work that was already underway.
Canada recently signed an agreement that gives its defence companies procurement access to the EU’s Security and Defence Partnership programme.
It also signed a landmark energy deal with Germany in May that would see the first-ever long-term shipments of liquified natural gas from Canada to Europe in the coming years.
On Thursday, Canada released its new National Security Strategy, the first in two decades, which underlines supporting security and stability in Europe as a priority.
As for what this new relationship status will be called, Carney has said the “nomenclature” does not matter.
“What matters is the difference it will make to the lives of Canadians,” he said.
