dailynewsnblog
Today, the Prime Minister, Mark Carney, met with the President of the European Council, António Costa, and the President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, on the margins of the 2026 G7 Leaders’ Summit in Évian, France.
The leaders discussed the work underway to expand the Canada-European Union (EU) partnership. In one year, Canada and the EU forged a new strategic partnership across trade, energy, climate and technology; we reached landmark critical mineral agreements with various member states; and Canada joined the EU’s Security Action for Europe (SAFE) – becoming the first non-European nation to join the initiative. Today, the leaders focused on the next steps in this mission, announcing two new agreements to collaborate in security and conservation.
First, the Prime Minister announced that the Montréal-based defence technology firm Marconi Technologies has been awarded a contract exceeding $10 million to supply made-in-Canada ORION tactical radios to Polish Cyber Command. In partnership with Polish company Enamor International, Canadian workers will help build the advanced gear to protect our allies, with deliveries expected to begin later this year and continue through to 2030. Marconi will leverage nearly 100 Canadian companies – from the skilled trades to advanced engineering – to help build this state-of-the-art product.
This is the first contract awarded to a Canadian company under SAFE, with many more to come. Canada’s membership in SAFE means our defence businesses, like Marconi, can compete for European contracts, creating good career opportunities back home.
Second, the leaders focused on the joint efforts between Canada and the EU to protect biodiversity and nature. To accelerate this work, Prime Minister Carney was pleased to accept President von der Leyen’s invitation for Canada to co-chair the OceanEye International Alliance – the EU’s ocean observation initiative. This new initiative will strengthen ocean observation capacity to improve climate forecasting and maritime security – and power growth. Canada will also host the 12th Our Ocean Conference in spring 2027, in Halifax, Nova Scotia. The Conference will attract partners to identify key gaps and solutions in ocean conservation.
Prime Minister Carney, President Costa, and President von der Leyen looked forward to meeting again, including at the next Canada-EU Summit, which will be hosted in Canada this fall, from October 29 to 30. They will remain in close contact.
