Von der Leyen backs EU associate membership for Canada

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen has backed a proposal to make Canada the European Union’s first “associate member,” offering Ottawa a closer place alongside the bloc as tensions deepen between Canada and the United States.

Speaking Wednesday during her annual State of the European Union address at the European Parliament in Strasbourg, von der Leyen told Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney she wanted to work on “opening the door” to a new status for Canada. Carney, who was seated in the front row, rose after the remarks, embraced von der Leyen and kissed her on both cheeks as lawmakers gave a standing ovation. He is due to address the Parliament on Thursday.

“This is a partnership not against anyone else, but for our common strength,” von der Leyen said. “In short, we want to bring the relationship with Canada to the highest level possible.”

Carney last week called for a “unique alliance” with the EU as Canada seeks to reduce its reliance on the United States. NPR reported that roughly 70% of Canadian exports go to the U.S. Trade talks between Ottawa and Washington collapsed last month, leading to new tariff measures. U.S. President Donald Trump’s tariffs and repeated talk of making Canada the 51st state have added to the feud between the North American neighbors.

Without naming Trump, von der Leyen said closer ties with Canada were a response to wider global strains. “Partnerships are a strategic choice for Europe,” she said. “But they also respond to the fracture in the international rules-based system.”

She said Canada and Europe “see the world with the same eyes” on issues including artificial intelligence, climate change and geopolitics, and had stood together on Ukraine, defense, raw materials and supply chains. “Above all, dear Mark, Europe and Canada believe in democracy,” she said. “We believe that power does not belong to the strongest, the richest or the loudest, but to all of us.”

Von der Leyen did not explain how associate membership would work. The status does not currently exist in the EU, and any process to create it could take years. Some EU capitals would rather build on existing trade and defense agreements than create a new type of membership for Canada. Ten of the bloc’s 27 member states have yet to ratify CETA, the free-trade agreement reached with Ottawa nearly a decade ago.

A Canadian official familiar with the discussions told The Associated Press last week that Ottawa was exploring ties with the EU that could stop short of membership, including an arrangement that could allow Canadians to live and work in Europe without visas as part of a broader strategic partnership. Carney’s office welcomed von der Leyen’s remarks, saying Canada was deepening ties with the EU “to strengthen our sovereignty” and supported moving beyond CETA toward an “Alliance for the Future.”

Von der Leyen said the expanded partnership could cover advanced manufacturing, technology, AI, defense production, energy, the Arctic, critical minerals, batteries, quantum computing, cybersecurity and economic security. Canada this year became the first non-European country to join the EU’s 150 billion euro, or $173 billion, SAFE defense program, giving Canadian companies access to joint procurement.

Carney said Tuesday that economic integration, once seen largely as an asset, is increasingly “being used as a weapon by certain countries.” He said discussions would ramp up at the Canada-EU summit in Montreal in late October.

Von der Leyen also proposed creating a European Security Council involving partners such as the United Kingdom, Ukraine, Canada and Norway, citing continuing threats to the continent from Russia. Her speech also included proposals on artificial intelligence, business regulation, migration and limits on children’s social media use.