Canada’s Carney stops short of endorsing EU Commission chief’s associate member plan

Por Gerardo Fortuna and Zoya Sheftalovich — POLITICO – TOP Stories

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Canada’s Carney stops short of endorsing von der Leyen’s associate member plan

Canadian prime minister says he welcomes “ambition” of European Commission president’s idea in speech in EU Parliament.

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European Parliament session in Strasbourg — Canada's Prime Minister Mark Carney speaks to the members of the Parliament at the European Parliament in Strasbourg, September 17, 2026. | Ronald Wittek/EPA

September 17, 2026

12:45 pm CET

Gerardo Fortuna and

Zoya Sheftalovich

STRASBOURG — Mark Carney used an address to the European Parliament to sketch out what Ottawa would want from closer ties with the EU but declined to give full-throated approval of Ursula von der Leyen’s surprise “associate member” plan.

Speaking a day after the Commission president floated the unique relationship status, the Canadian prime minister acknowledged the offer and instead of accepting it outright, listed potential individual areas of cooperation, including critical minerals, defense, AI, energy security, and space.

He also called for more seamless digital trade in non-agricultural goods and services, as well as Canadian participation in Erasmus+, the EU’s student exchange program.

“We welcome this ambition,” he said, after name-checking the idea of von der Leyen, who was sitting in the audience. “Polling shows an overwhelming majority of Canadians support much closer ties.”

Carney’s list of potential tie-ups was an early attempt to put substance behind what, for now, remains a largely undefined political proposition.

The “associate member” idea had caused confusion on Wednesday because the Commission hadn’t run it past European capitals in advance and no such status currently exists. Later on Wednesday, U.S. President Donald Trump said he might respond with “serious tariffs” if Canada were to become closer to the EU.

“An alliance for the future is a unique, positive approach that we will define together, building on our common strengths and based on shared values,” Carney said.

In a press conference after the speech, Carney was asked if the Canadian people would have a say on associate membership. He said: “Of course. There will be debates, and there will be a vote in the Canadian parliament, but at this point, this is just the beginning of the process.”

Carney’s admission that there will be eventual votes in parliament on this “Alliance for the Future” with the EU seemed to suggest Canadian lawmakers will get a say in what the prime minister’s team is cooking. The House of Commons returns from summer break on Monday.

Before von der Leyen dropped the “associate member” label, Carney advised Canadian reporters that there would not be a “big reveal” in Strasbourg.

“The real deepening and discussions will be launched with our summit in Montreal … towards the end of October,” he said in Toronto on Tuesday on the sidelines of his global investment summit.“And then go for it from there.”

Europe is a top priority for the Carney government because the EU is viewed as the easiest way for Canada to deepen an existing free-trade relationship, one that was debated in Parliament a decade ago.

Industry Minister Mélanie Joly dropped a hint to reporters in Toronto on Wednesday that Ottawa is looking for additional guarantees on trade — which could require new legislation.

When asked about the possibility of “associate” EU membership, Joly observed that countries with free-trade agreements tend to become more insular to protect their own industries when targeted by tariffs.

She singled out the EU specifically.

“We want to make sure that markets are still opened between us and that not only a free trade agreement holds, but that we align our industrial policies, particularly in sectors impacted by the tariffs,” she said. “That’s really important.”

Now there is pressure on officials in Canada and the EU to finish their laundry list of to-dos before they arrive in Montreal to show progress in a range of areas from trade and defense procurement to AI and supercomputing.

Ambassador-designate to the EU Jonathan Wilkinson told POLITICO the goal of the EU-Canada Summit will be to identify “a set of very concrete action items” to achieve during the next year. “The intent is to be very ambitious.”

This article has been updated. Zi-Ann Lum and Sue Allan contributed reporting from Ottawa.

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