Carney makes case for deeper alliance between Canada and the EU

Prime Minister Mark Carney is pitching a new alliance between Canada and the European Union as a means of protecting the sovereignty of both, suggesting they must work together to build independent data and computing power, payment systems and defence industries and develop energy and critical mineral supplies.

In a speech Thursday to the European Parliament in Strasbourg, France, Mr. Carney did not directly name the United States, though there was no doubt the country was top of mind for him.

The speech was a call-and-response to one given a day earlier by European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen in which she invited Canada to become the first-ever “associate member” of the EU.

That evening, U.S. President Donald Trump warned he might consider an attempt by the bloc to grant Canada such status a “hostile act.”

Yet the Prime Minister insisted Thursday that what he is proposing is a way to strengthen Canada’s and Europe’s sovereignty, not build another U.S. rival.

“I am not proposing a third bloc in order to become a great-power rival – only with better manners,” Mr. Carney said.

“We do not seek power to dominate others. On the contrary, we are pursuing resilience so no one, no one can control our open markets, impair our sovereignty, threaten our territorial integrity or undermine our freedoms, our democracies, our rule of law.”

The invitation to take up a currently undefined status the EU has never used before has raised broad questions about what it would entail – and to what extent Canada might pool funds with the EU and harmonize policies or regulations.

At home, opposition politicians argued it could mean surrendering a substantial portion of Canada’s sovereignty, and some European leaders expressed qualms about calling the new relationship an associate membership. Mr. Carney’s delegation preferred to echo another phrase in Ms. von der Leyen’s speech, calling it an “alliance for the future.”

On Thursday Mr. Carney said Ms. von der Leyen’s proposal opens the door for Canada to become the first associate member, adding, “Canada welcomes this ambition.”

But Mr. Trump’s warning Wednesday left a vague but ominous threat over the proposal.

The idea that the U.S. might object to a new Canada-EU relationship could even reinforce Mr. Carney’s call for sovereignty. His speech also made it clear that one goal is to reduce reliance on U.S. financial systems, technology and defence industries.

“Sovereignty goes beyond being able to feed, fuel and defend ourselves. It now requires secure access to AI, semiconductors, critical minerals, payment systems, clean energy technologies, vaccines and space-based communications,” he said.

“We all have important gaps in these strategic capabilities, and we each rely on individual nations or companies to fill them. This creates vulnerabilities, particularly when supposedly ‘global’ companies prove national in the breach.”

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Mr. Carney was briefly interrupted before his speech began by someone shouting, “U.S.A.! U.S.A.!” He smiled and laughed, while some members of the European Parliament voiced their disapproval at the outburst.

The Prime Minister said recently that Canada envisions a “unique alliance” with the EU that goes beyond the Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement, the pact signed in 2016.

Negotiating associate membership would be complex and likely prompt pushback from EU states, 10 of which have never ratified the CETA. Canadian opposition parties said Wednesday that Mr. Carney should not pursue it without seeking parliamentary approval.

During a news conference with the President of the European Parliament, Roberta Metsola, Mr. Carney promised to hold a series of debates and a vote in Parliament on any future relationship with the EU. But he added that the process has just started.

“It’s an exciting time,” he said.

He appeared to back away from the notion of Canada becoming an associate member, saying that was a term used by the EU. “What matters is the substance,” he said, adding that Canada is not seeking to become a full member.

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He fleshed out few details but suggested a handful of directions. He said an alliance could include Canadian membership in the EU’s Erasmus student programs to provide more Canadians opportunities to study at European universities, and vice versa.

And he noted that Canada could be a secure supplier for the stockpiles of critical minerals the EU is proposing to build, as well as contributing liquefied natural gas and hydrogen.

He proposed pooling sovereign compute infrastructure and working together to develop AI safety protocols and common standards, as well as building an integrated financial services market.

Mr. Carney’s speech in Strasbourg caps a whirlwind week. He hosted global institutional investors at the Canada Investment Summit in Toronto on Monday and Tuesday. Between stops in France, he flew to Liverpool, England, on Wednesday night to discuss a defence partnership with his British counterpart, Andy Burnham.

Canada will host a summit with the EU in Montreal at the end of October.

Mr. Trump threatened to take action against the EU if it moves forward with Ms. von der Leyen’s proposal.

“If they do that, if I think it’s at all a hostile act, I will put very serious tariffs or stop trading with Europe on many things,” he told reporters en route to an event in North Carolina, calling the proposal “laughable.”

“If it’s a good intention, that’s fine. If it’s a bad intention, we’ll put very heavy tariffs on Europe,” he added.

The European Commission said the proposal was not a hostile act.

“As our President made clear yesterday, the proposed strengthening of our partnership with Canada is not against anyone else, but for our common strength,” said Olof Gill, an EC spokesperson.

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France’s Europe Minister, Benjamin Haddad, said the U.S. has no power to veto the EU’s geopolitical choices.

“It is not up to the United States – or anyone else – to choose the political and geopolitical direction of the Europeans,” he told Public Sénat TV.

French Foreign Affairs Minister Jean-Noël Barrot also responded to Mr. Trump’s threat.

“It is the sovereign choice of states to join their destinies together,” Mr. Barrot said on French TV channel LCI. “Sovereignty is like borders, it is like democracy: It is not negotiable.”

He was less certain about Canada’s potential status as an associate member of the EU. The new arrangement will have “to be debated, examined in detail and analyzed.”

With reports from Reuters