The European Union has a number of partnership deals with non-member countries, but Canada won’t fit into any of those existing frameworks.
A joint statement expected to be released at the 21st Canada-EU summit in Montreal on Friday will promise closer ties — though no one knows exactly what that means yet.
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen announced last month that the EU would begin the process of making Canada its first “associate member.”
Ursula speaks
At the turn of the last century, Jean Monnet discovered Canada’s pioneering spirit.
He brought that spirit back to Europe.
And went on to become one of the founding fathers of our Union.
Today, that same spirit inspires us to explore a historic first:
Canada becoming the EU’s first associate member ↓
https://t.co/IMc7oCOiAZ— Ursula von der Leyen (@vonderleyen) October 29, 2026
