BRUSSELS — The EU was divided Tuesday over whether to offer “associate member” status to Canada, with several countries refusing to sign a declaration containing the phrase just 48 hours before a summit between the two sides in Montreal.
After EU capitals failed to agree on the wording of the declaration during discussions between ambassadors on Monday, they used the so-called silence procedure on Tuesday. This meant that a new text would be adopted automatically without a meeting or formal vote, if no country objected to it by noon.
But Germany, which is leading the campaign to have the term “associate member” completely removed from the text, is among at least four countries that have broken the silence procedure before the deadline, said two EU diplomats, speaking on condition of anonymity to speak freely. That means the topic will be discussed at another meeting of EU ambassadors on Wednesday, just a day before the EU-Canada summit kicks off.
Gn world
