Brussels Courts Canada as Trump Shakes the Alliance

The European Union and Canada will meet in Montréal on Friday to discuss trade, investment, supply chains, artificial intelligence, climate, security and the Arctic. Brussels also wants closer ties between governments, parliaments and courts, and plans to advance Canada’s integration into EU programmes such as Horizon and Erasmus. The summit aims to build a broader political and economic alliance as Donald Trump reshapes the relationship with the United States.

Trump’s re-election, tariffs, annexation threats, affinity for Russia and attacks on the multilateral system have left Europeans increasingly distrustful of policies associated with Washington, the article said. Canada, meanwhile, depends on the U.S. economy, making the search for alternative allies an existential imperative. Trump’s effort to turn Canada into “the 51st state” has damaged a neighbourly bond stretching back centuries, one long thought immune to partisan shifts.

A partnership without accession

Ursula von der Leyen, president of the European Commission, spoke at the C.D. Howe Institute ahead of the summit. “It has become clear that there's much more that we can do together,” she said, adding that “Canada and the European Union are two complementary systems.” She also referred to Emily Carr and Leonard Cohen. Montréal’s stately architecture and Baroque facades have often earned it the description of one of North America’s most European-looking cities. The venue also reflects the EU’s ambition to make Canada its closest non-European ally, a position traditionally held by the United States.

Von der Leyen invited Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney to her State of the Union speech in September, where she proposed making Canada the bloc’s first-ever “associate member.” Carney later proposed an “alliance for the future” in Strasbourg, built on shared prosperity and security. Before the summit, he said it should be “strong enough so that no one can dictate our choices” and “open enough that others can join,” rebuking Trump’s “America First” approach.

The final declaration revealed a disagreement within the alliance-building effort. Just hours before von der Leyen flew to Montréal, Germany pressed forcefully to remove every reference to “associate membership.” The declaration instead commits the parties to an “ever closer association.” Germany introduced the “associate member” label earlier this year in the context of Ukraine, and Berlin hasn’t abandoned the idea despite mixed reviews.

“Our idea is simple: it is an association without accession,” von der Leyen said at the C.D. Howe Institute. “But we can replace accession with a common ambition and vision. We can build a partnership that comes closer to membership than anything we have done before.” Carney later endorsed the call, saying, “We're in the process of forging a new alliance for the future, with Canada as an associate member.”

Resources, prices and the war in Ukraine

Critical raw materials and liquefied natural gas top the agenda, too. Canada is ready to increase exports of both. The EU needs minerals to reduce its dependence on China, which Beijing has accused of weaponising them, and new energy suppliers to bring down retail prices. The language of partnership sits alongside a practical contest over supply chains and access to resources.

Support for Ukraine is another priority. The country faces a €70 billion gap in its 2027 budget as Russia escalates its war, damages the domestic economy and blockades Black Sea routes. The EU is willing to cover two-thirds of the shortfall, roughly €46 billion, and wants allies, including Canada, to provide the remaining third. That assistance must be new and additional to existing pledges, so Canada’s participation in the EU’s €90 billion support loan won't count toward it.

Von der Leyen travelled to Montréal with European Council President António Costa, High Representative Kaja Kallas and nine Commissioners. Brussels is considering a meeting between the entire College of Commissioners and the Canadian cabinet sometime next year, a format reserved for rare occasions of importance and last used with India, another trading partner drawn closer to Europe by Trump’s disruption. A senior EU official described the effort plainly: “We're embarking on the start of a journey. Let's be honest, this is a tiny bit of uncharted territory.”