EU chief von der Leyen proposes ‘associate member’ status for Canada

Prime Minister Mark Carney said earlier this week that Canada was seeking a ‘unique alliance’ with the European Union.

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen delivers a speech near Canada's Prime Minister Mark Carney, second right, during her annual State of the Union address at a plenary session of the European Parliament in Strasbourg, eastern France on September 16, 2026 [Jean-Christophe Verhaegen/AFP]

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen has raised the prospect of Canada becoming the 27-nation European Union’s first “associate member”, a striking overture as both seek to pivot away from a hostile United States under President Donald Trump.

Von der Leyen’s statement on Wednesday came after Prime Minister Mark Carney said earlier this week that Canada was seeking a “unique alliance” with the EU, but not membership.

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Von der Leyen told the European Parliament in Strasbourg that, as democracies are facing a “fracture in the international rules-based system”, Brussels and Ottawa needed to pull closer together.

“I would like to work with you on opening the door for Canada to be the first associate member of the EU,” von der Leyen told Carney, who was attending her annual keynote speech.

The first foreign head of government to attend the annual “State of the European Union” address, his visit comes in advance of an EU-Canada summit in Montreal next month. Carney will deliver his own address to the European Parliament on Thursday.

Von der Leyen said it was time to move from cooperation based on a trading relationship to a broader “alliance for the future” and “bring the relationship with Canada to the highest level possible”.

She said that the EU and Canada would work together on sectors ranging from manufacturing to AI, critical minerals and energy.

“This is a partnership not against anyone else, but for our common strength,” she added.

EU treaties do not envision the possibility of becoming an “associate member”. But the idea was first proposed by German Chancellor Friedrich Merz this year regarding Ukraine.

Under the plan, which met a cold reception in Kyiv as it pushes for full membership status , Ukraine would have been allowed to attend the bloc’s summits and have a representative in the European Commission.

It would have also benefitted from parts of the EU budget, but without full voting rights.

Buffeted by US tariffs and competition from China, Brussels and Ottawa already enjoy considerable cooperation.

A free-trade agreement (CETA) that abolished almost all tariffs has been credited with boosting trade in goods and services by more than 80 percent since 2016.

Furthermore, Canada became the first non-EU country to join a flagship defence loan programme this year.

“We believe that power does not belong to the strongest, the richest or the loudest – but to all of us. That democracies have the freedom to choose with whom to work,” von der Leyen said. “So, we are joining forces voluntarily.”

加拿大总理马克·卡尼本周早些时候表示，加拿大正在寻求与欧盟建立“独特的联盟”。

2026年9月16日，在法国东部城市斯特拉斯堡举行的欧洲议会全体会议上，欧盟委员会主席乌尔苏拉·冯德莱恩发表年度国情咨文，加拿大总理马克·卡尼（右二）在她旁边发表讲话。[Jean-Christophe Verhaegen/AFP]

欧盟委员会主席乌尔苏拉·冯德莱恩提出了加拿大成为欧盟27个成员国中第一个“联系成员国”的可能性，这是一个引人注目的提议，因为两国都试图摆脱唐纳德·特朗普总统领导下的敌对美国。

冯德莱恩周三发表声明之前，加拿大总理马克·卡尼本周早些时候表示，加拿大正在寻求与欧盟建立“独特的联盟”，但并非加入欧盟。

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冯德莱恩在斯特拉斯堡向欧洲议会表示，由于民主国家正面临“基于规则的国际体系的分裂”，布鲁塞尔和渥太华需要更加紧密地团结在一起。

“我愿与您合作，为加拿大成为欧盟第一个准成员国打开大门，”冯德莱恩对前来参加她年度主题演讲的卡尼说道。

卡尼是首位出席欧盟年度“欧盟国情咨文”的外国政府首脑，此次访问正值欧盟-加拿大峰会下月在蒙特利尔举行之前。卡尼将于周四在欧洲议会发表国情咨文。

冯德莱恩表示，现在是时候从基于贸易关系的合作转向更广泛的“面向未来的联盟”，并将“与加拿大的关系提升到尽可能高的高度”。

她表示，欧盟和加拿大将在从制造业到人工智能、关键矿产和能源等各个领域开展合作。

她补充说：“这是一种不与任何人对抗的伙伴关系，而是为了我们共同的力量。”

欧盟条约并未设想成为“联系成员国”的可能性。但德国总理弗里德里希·默茨今年首次就乌克兰问题提出了这一想法。

该计划在基辅遭到冷遇，因为乌克兰正在争取正式成员国地位。根据该计划，乌克兰将被允许参加欧盟峰会，并在欧盟委员会中拥有一名代表。

它还可以受益于欧盟预算的一部分，但没有完整的投票权。

受到美国关税和中国竞争的冲击，布鲁塞尔和渥太华之间已经建立了相当密切的合作关系。

一项取消几乎所有关税的自由贸易协定（CETA）被认为自 2016 年以来促进了货物和服务贸易增长 80% 以上。

此外，加拿大今年成为第一个加入旗舰国防贷款计划的非欧盟国家。

冯德莱恩说：“我们相信，权力不属于最强者、最富有者或最聒噪者，而是属于我们所有人。民主国家有权自由选择与谁合作。因此，我们是自愿携手合作的。”