15 September : Amid worsening trade relations with the United States, Canada is moving to build closer economic and strategic ties with the European Union, with discussions reportedly underway over the possibility of making Canada an “associate member” of the bloc, The Wall Street Journal reported.
According to the newspaper, Canadian officials began discussions with European Union counterparts on strengthening economic ties after trade talks with Washington collapsed. Several Canadian and European officials familiar with the matter said, on condition of anonymity, that European officials had also shown interest in a proposal to establish some form of “associate membership” for Canada.
Historically, the EU has not offered such flexible membership arrangements to individual countries. If a special framework were created for Canada, it would therefore represent a significant exception. A potential agreement could also lead to the most substantial restructuring of Canada’s economy in decades.
The initiative carries major significance for Canada’s trade landscape. In 2025, around 72 percent of the country’s total exports went to the United States. Reducing its longstanding heavy dependence on Washington and shifting toward Europe would therefore represent a major economic and strategic adjustment for Ottawa.
Details of any potential agreement have yet to be finalised. However, if the talks succeed, Canada and the EU could expand bilateral trade while exploring projects such as transporting fertiliser to Europe through the Arctic and developing new natural gas pipelines. Such initiatives could help reduce Europe’s dependence on Russian natural gas.
Beyond energy and goods trade, the two sides are also considering greater cooperation in technology and infrastructure. Joint initiatives could include the installation of new undersea cables, satellite launches and the construction of data centres. These projects could gain particular importance as concerns grow on both sides of the Atlantic over dependence on US technology companies.
Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney also has longstanding personal and professional ties with Europe. He studied at Oxford University in the United Kingdom and served as governor of the Bank of England from 2013 to 2020. According to The Wall Street Journal, Carney maintains regular contact with European leaders, including French President Emmanuel Macron.
Carney has reportedly discussed with Macron plans to provide Canadians with opportunities to live and work in Europe without visas. He is also seeking to have Canada included in the European Union’s student exchange programme, which allows students to study at universities in different countries.
Carney’s planned visit to Europe next week has also drawn particular attention. He is scheduled to visit Liverpool in the United Kingdom and Strasbourg in France. During the trip, he is expected to address the European Parliament and take part in the State of the European Union address. The Canadian prime minister’s office said Carney will meet members of the European Parliament to discuss strengthening Canada-EU relations in trade, investment and security. It remains unclear, however, whether he will make any formal announcement regarding associate membership during the visit.
Canada’s growing focus on Europe is largely driven by its ongoing trade dispute with the United States. In August, Carney instructed Canadian negotiators to withdraw from ongoing discussions with US representatives. The two countries subsequently imposed retaliatory tariffs on each other’s goods.
Washington has recently escalated the dispute further. Last week, US President Donald Trump banned a range of Canadian products, including certain dairy and alcoholic goods, while also threatening to block the sale in the United States of foreign-made aircraft produced by Canadian aircraft manufacturer Bombardier.
Since returning to the presidency in 2025, Trump has repeatedly referred to Canada as the “51st state” of the United States, often in a mocking manner. Amid the trade dispute, he also moved in August to rename the government-administered Lake Ontario as “Lake America.”
As a result, the Canada-US crisis is no longer confined to trade and tariff policies; it has increasingly taken on political and strategic dimensions. In this context, closer ties with the EU are being viewed not merely as an effort to find new markets, but as part of a broader strategy to reduce risks associated with Canada’s dependence on the US economy, develop alternative partners in energy and technology, and create new avenues for international trade and security cooperation.
However, given the enormous volume of trade between Canada and the United States, the key question is how quickly and how deeply this economic and strategic realignment can actually be implemented.
Source: The Wall Street Journal