Today, the Prime Minister, Mark Carney, met with the President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, in Strasbourg, France.

Prime Minister Carney thanked President von der Leyen for the invitation to attend her State of the European Union (EU) address – a signal of the deepening relationship between Canada and the EU. 

The Prime Minister welcomed the President’s proposal for Canada and the EU to move beyond the Canada-EU Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA) to a far stronger, more ambitious alliance in the future. In a more dangerous and divided world, the leaders emphasised that Canada and Europe should secure our strategic autonomy through deep cooperation in the full range of strategic capabilities. This includes critical minerals, defence industrial capacity, AI and compute, energy security, space, as well as financial services and payments. The leaders also discussed moving toward seamless digital trade in non-agricultural goods and a wide range of services.

This is a unique approach that they will define together – an approach that builds on complementary strengths and is grounded by shared values. 

The two leaders also reaffirmed their commitment to strengthening transatlantic security and supporting Ukraine against Russia’s war of aggression.

Prime Minister Carney and President von der Leyen agreed to remain in close contact.

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