US trade war and annexation rhetoric fuel Canadian EU enthusiasm
Prime Minister Mark Carney welcomed the EU’s ambition to make Canada the bloc’s first “associate member” during a Thursday address to the European Parliament in Strasbourg, urging closer cooperation on defence and energy.
“We should deepen our people-to-people ties, allowing our youth to live, work and study where they want on either side of the Atlantic,” Carney told MEPs. The prime minister said Canada and Europe were “stronger together” in the face of “geopolitical rupture.”
The BBC noted that “associate member” status does not currently exist within the EU and could take years to implement, given that all 27 EU member states would have to approve such an arrangement. Details of the proposed arrangement remain scarce.
In central Toronto, commuters and residents the BBC spoke to expressed excitement about the prospect of working and studying in the EU as news of Carney’s speech spread. Miriam Levin-Gold endorsed the prime minister’s vision of expanded mobility for young Canadians. “I think that’s great for young people to explore different parts of the world and work in different places and have different experiences,” she said. Alex Nash, from Montreal, said closer ties would clear away the obstacles of work visas and permits. “It would certainly be really nice for that to be easier, more convenient and to be able to visit more easily,” she said.
Canadian social media lit up with the topic. On a Facebook group called A Canadian Outlook, users posted about wanting grandchildren to study at European universities at better rates, and one woman said the proposal would make access easier to a home she already owns in France. “Snow birds are going to love it,” another person wrote, referring to Canadians who head to warmer locations in winter.
Several of those the BBC interviewed tied their enthusiasm to a souring of US-Canada relations under President Donald Trump. Growing up in Canada, David Jardine thought of the United States as not just a neighbour but an “epicentre of culture and cool.” “I remember wanting to go and visit New York all the time,” he told the BBC after finishing an overnight shift not far from one of Toronto’s most iconic buildings, the CN Tower. Jardine said he had become more skeptical of the United States in light of Trump’s trade war and annexation rhetoric. “I would say I think not only does it make more sense to associate closely with Europe, it’s a place that I would rather be associating with given the way things are these days,” he said.
Maggie Stainton, who manages the C’est What pub in Toronto’s St Lawrence Market district, became emotional when she spoke about Canada’s frayed ties with the US, telling the BBC “It’s too volatile with the United States.” The broadcaster reported that for decades, America has been a cultural centre of gravity that is difficult to avoid, with many Canadian actors working in Hollywood and Canadian radio stations playing US music. “I think we’re forced to feel more American simply by the influences that we have,” Stainton added. “However, I think deep down, I definitely I lean towards feeling more European in my ideas and ideals.”
Ahmed Khalil offered a more measured view. “I grew up here. I’ve been here 40 years in Canada, in Ontario, and America’s always been the neighbour,” he said. Building bridges with Europe makes sense, Khalil said: “I think it brings in more money for Canada and more culture, brings Europeans over, probably solves a lot of problems.” But Canada should not forget its southern neighbour, he added. “I think both are equally valuable to us. Both are equally valid.”
The Abacus Data survey, conducted before Carney’s speech, found 80% of Canadians said the country should deepen strategic cooperation with the EU, and over half said they felt closer to Europe than to the United States. Over half of Canada’s population reported having European origins in the 2021 census, the BBC reported.
Carney, who previously led both the Bank of Canada and the Bank of England, was elected on a promise to take a tough stance against Trump and broaden Canada’s economic horizons. The BBC reported that up to 72% of Canadian exports go to the United States, a concentration the ongoing trade tensions have spurred Ottawa to try to ease through closer ties elsewhere.
Opposition voices urged caution. Adam Chambers, the Conservative MP for Simcoe North in Ontario, told the BBC on the eve of Carney’s speech: “It could be a concrete, meaningful proposal. Or it could be just words and vibes.” Chambers noted that the existing Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA) between the EU and Canada still awaits ratification by multiple EU nations. The BBC reported that a pair of opposition Conservative MPs have called on Carney to elaborate on what he and the bloc plan to work toward.