The European Union’s top executive is still championing Canada as the economic bloc’s first “associate member,” even though the term is no longer expected to appear in a joint statement marking this visit. European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen made the comments during a speech Thursday in Montreal, just before a two-day Canada-EU Summit. It came a day after The Globe and Mail reported that, according to sources familiar with the deliberations, the term “associate member” was dropped from a draft of the statement to be released Friday by Ottawa and Brussels. The shelving of the term from the statement, after objections from major players, including Germany and France, won’t change the thrust of efforts to deepen economic and security ties between Canada and the EU. However, it does sideline a label that galvanized interest in what this new alliance might look like, as both countries try to reduce reliance on an increasingly unpredictable United States. “We both want to bring our relationship to the highest level possible, and this is why we are discussing the idea of Canada becoming the first associate member of the European Union,” Ms. von der Leyen said during her speech. Prime Minister Mark Carney said he’s not concerned with which term the EU uses to describe a closer relationship with Ottawa. “The new alliance is not a marketing exercise,” he told reporters in Montreal on Thursday. “The name doesn’t matter.”

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The European Union’s top executive is still championing Canada as the economic bloc’s first “associate member,” even though the term is no longer expected to appear in a joint statement marking this visit. European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen made the comments during a speech Thursday in Montreal, just before a two-day Canada-EU Summit. It came a day after The Globe and Mail reported that, according to sources familiar with the deliberations, the term “associate member” was dropped from a draft of the statement to be released Friday by Ottawa and Brussels. The shelving of the term from the statement, after objections from major players, including Germany and France, won’t change the thrust of efforts to deepen economic and security ties between Canada and the EU. However, it does sideline a label that galvanized interest in what this new alliance might look like, as both countries try to reduce reliance on an increasingly unpredictable United States. “We both want to bring our relationship to the highest level possible, and this is why we are discussing the idea of Canada becoming the first associate member of the European Union,” Ms. von der Leyen said during her speech. Prime Minister Mark Carney said he’s not concerned with which term the EU uses to describe a closer relationship with Ottawa. “The new alliance is not a marketing exercise,” he told reporters in Montreal on Thursday. “The name doesn’t matter.” #CdnPoli #Canada #EU #EuropeanUnion

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