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Canada's Mark Carney pushes ‘new alliance’ with EU amid Trump threat: ‘No one going to dictate…'
Mark Carney's remarks came after EU chief Ursula von der Leyen suggested Canada could become the 27-nation bloc's first "associate member".
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Amid escalating tensions between the US and Canada over tariffs, Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney has pitched a "new alliance" with Europe as a shield against outside pressures, during his speech to the European Parliament.
Carney's remarks came after EU chief Ursula von der Leyen suggested Canada could become the 27-nation bloc's first "associate member" in her annual "State of the European Union" address on Wednesday.
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"Europe and Canada are stronger together," Carney was quoted as saying by AFP, as he added that Canada welcomed the EU proposal and wanted deeper cooperation on issues from artificial intelligence to defence and energy.
‘No one going to dictate…’: Mark Carney
Carney responded to US President Donald Trump's threat to cut trade ties with the EU over its plans of alliance with Canada and said, "No one is going to dictate our culture, or with whom we can strike agreements internationally."
Carney has been pursuing closer ties with the Europe, as his country gets drawn ever deeper into a trade war with the US.
EU-US relations have also been strained by tariffs and territorial threats.
Von der Leyen's proposal drew an irritated rebuke from Trump, who slammed it as "laughable" and told reporters he could impose "very serious tariffs" or "stop trading with Europe" should it go ahead.
Earlier this week, Carney said Canada was seeking a "unique alliance" with the EU but not membership. Amid repeated threats from Trump against Canada's sovereignty, Carney is seeking new alliances.
EU and Canada are aiming to forge deeper cooperation to counter US and Chinese economic dominance as well as preserve democracy and the rules-based international order, which they see as under threat.
In her speech, von der Leyen said the two sides would create a "common prosperity and economic space"., Reuters reported. This would include joint work on manufacturing, a tech alliance, integration of defence industrial bases, the Arctic, AI, energy and critical minerals.
Canada and the EU already have a trade agreement, called CETA. More than a decade after the deal was struck and nine years since it provisionally entered into force, several EU countries still have not ratified it.
