Canada Backed by EU Chief as First 'Associate Member'

Ursula von der Leyen used the EU Parliament’s annual address in Strasbourg to set out closer cooperation with Canada and to renew calls for a new security forum, as trade tensions and geopolitical risks continue to build.

Cooperation With Canada

The European Commission president said partnerships are a strategic choice for Europe and also a response to strains in the international, rules-based system. She indicated that cooperation is not intended to be directed against any other country, but to strengthen shared interests.

Von der Leyen said the EU and Canada see global challenges through the same outlook, pointing to areas including artificial intelligence, climate change and geopolitics. She added that the bloc and Canada have worked together on Ukraine, defence, raw materials and supply chains, and she said both sides believe in democracy.

She also outlined additional areas for collaboration, including energy, critical minerals and batteries, as well as AI, cyber matters and economic security.

Carney was among those attending the keynote speech in Strasbourg, and is due to speak to the parliament on Thursday.

Trade Talks Collapse Amid Tariffs

Von der Leyen’s remarks on international cooperation came after trade negotiations between Canada and the US collapsed last month. She said the breakdown of talks had triggered a series of new tariff measures.

The Commission president made the case for deeper EU-Canada alignment as EU member states have also been affected by trade tariffs introduced during Donald Trump’s administration.

European Security Council Proposal

Alongside economic and technology-related cooperation, von der Leyen proposed the creation of a European Security Council. She said the new body would include the UK and Ukraine, and she framed the plan in the context of the continuing threat facing the continent from Russia.

She said EU leaders had long discussed a format focused on security, bringing in partners such as Canada, Norway, Ukraine and the United Kingdom, among others. In the address, she argued that the need for such cooperation is more pressing now, given the nature and scale of the risks at stake, and said the Commission would set out its ideas to make a European Security Council a reality.

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16 September 2026

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