Canada invited to become 'associate EU member' after PM Mark Carney condemns Brexit

Mrs von der Leyen's intervention comes just days after the Canadian Prime Minister said he was looking to forge a "unique alliance" with Brussels.

The Commonwealth realm is attempting to build stronger alliances away from North America amid a furious trade war with the US.

Last month, Donald Trump slapped a 50 per cent tariff on a broad range of Canadian exports after bilateral trade negotiations collapsed.

Canada launched its own duties in retaliation, with tariffs reaching as high as 50 per cent on nearly $28billion (around £15billion) worth of American goods.

Despite the ongoing tensions between Washington and Ottawa, Ms von der Leyen insisted handing Canada some form of membership was "not a partnership against anyone else, but for our common strength".

She told the European Parliament: "Partnerships are a strategic choice for Europe. But they also respond to the fracture in the international rules-based system."

The European Commission president insisted that Canada and Brussels "see the world with the same eyes", citing similar attitudes towards climate change, AI development and geopolitical tensions.

Ursula von der Leyen threw her support behind 'opening the door' to establish much closer ties with Ottawa across key sectors

REUTERS

She added: "And we have stood together: on Ukraine, on defence, on raw materials and on supply chains. But above all... Europe and Canada believe in democracy."

Mr Carney is scheduled to deliver a speech to the European Parliament today after visiting Britain, where he watched Everton's League Cup tie against Wolves with fellow Toffees fan Andy Burnham.

In the UK, Canada also formally applied to join the British-led Joint Expeditionary Force (Jef) military coalition.

Mr Carney's office said last night his nation would be looking to join 10 ⁠Nato allies including Norway and the Netherlands and bolster the a rapid response military partnership.

But his drive to pile in with European projects comes after a number of interventions on Brexit in the past.

Mr Carney is scheduled to deliver a speech to the European Parliament today after visiting Britain, where he watched Everton's League Cup tie against Wolves with fellow Toffees fan Andy Burnham

PA

The Canadian Prime Minister has previously commented on the topic of EU membership, bashing the UK's decision to leave the bloc.

After the Canadian province of Alberta announced it would hold a referendum on a vote to become an independent state, Mr Carney branded the move "undemocratic" and compared it to Brexit.

The former Bank of England Governor claimed that 10 years after Brexit, the UK was trying to "undo what people didn't think they were voting for, but what they ended up having".

"I saw first-hand what happened in the United Kingdom, when the view was: 'Vote for this, it’ll be soft and then we'll negotiate, etc,'" the Canadian Prime Minister said.

"Is it the democratic will of Alberta? Did they vote for this in the last provincial election? No, they didn't. It wasn't on the ballot paper."

The European Commission president insisted that Canada and Brussels 'see the world with the same eyes'

REUTERS

Albertans on October 19 will vote if they want to remain part of Canada, or hold a binding vote on separation at a later date.

Despite Ms von der Leyen's remarks this week, Canada's path to "associate membership" may prove complicated as the status does not currently exist.

A similar motion was tabled by Germany's Chancellor Friedrich Merz earlier this year, as he suggested awarding the status to Ukraine.

In January, Mr Carney told the World Economic Forum in Davos called for middle powers - such as Canada - to form an alliance following Mr Trump's repeated threats to annex Greenland.

As he declared that the old world order was over, the Canadian Prime Minister said: "Middle powers must act together because if you are not at the table, you are on the menu."