Associate status would need unanimous approval from all 27 EU states

Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney addressed the European Parliament in Strasbourg on Thursday, setting out areas where Canada and the European Union could deepen cooperation while explicitly ruling out Canadian full membership in the bloc.

Carney told reporters after the address that Canada was “not in a position, nor seeking, to become a full member of the European Union.” He said the proposed relationship was not an attempt to create a “third bloc,” adding: “We do not seek power to dominate others.”

In his address, Carney framed the alignment as necessary to confront what he called the “current geopolitical rupture” — a reference to strained relations with the United States following President Donald Trump’s tariff policy and the collapse of US-Canada trade talks.

Carney set out five key areas for cooperation: artificial intelligence, critical minerals, defence industrial capacity, energy security, and the space sector. He also said Canada wanted to move toward membership of the EU’s Erasmus Plus scheme, the student-exchange and funding programme in which all 27 EU states participate, along with seven non-EU members. The United Kingdom is scheduled to rejoin the scheme in 2027.

On energy, Carney said Canada could contribute liquefied natural gas and hydrogen “at large scale to support Europe’s energy security,” while Canada could in turn benefit from what he described as Europe’s leadership on clean-energy technologies.

The proposal originated Wednesday in European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen’s State of the Union address, in which she listed several areas for cooperation with Canada. Von der Leyen did not detail how an associate-membership framework would operate in practice.

The mechanics remain unclear. EU treaties currently contain no provision for associate membership. Germany had floated Ukrainian associate membership earlier this year, but Kyiv rejected the idea, saying it sought only full EU integration, and the EU itself appeared reluctant. Creating an associate status for Canada, if enshrined in EU treaties, would require unanimity and ratification by all 27 member states — a process that could take years.

Some EU member states would prefer to build on existing defence and trade agreements rather than create a new category of membership. The EU is Canada’s second-largest trading partner, and the Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA) was concluded more than a decade ago, though several of the bloc’s 27 members have yet to ratify it.

Even under CETA, border checks remain. Whether associate membership would alter that remains to be seen. Were Canada to join the European single market, it would have to match EU regulations and standards while having no say in setting them — an arrangement similar to that of European Economic Area members Norway, Iceland and Liechtenstein, or Switzerland, which operates under a separate deal. Canada’s regulatory framework has historically been oriented toward its largest trading partner, the United States.

The proposal has implications for the EU’s wider queue of aspirant members. Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro, North Macedonia and Serbia are already on the path toward full EU membership, while Georgia and Moldova are also pursuing accession. There is no indication that a new arrangement with Canada would slow those processes, but the perception that Ottawa was receiving preferential treatment could create friction.

President Trump has publicly dismissed the proposal, calling it “laughable” and threatening further tariffs on the EU if the plan moves forward.