Von der Leyen touts Canada’s “associate member” status despite objections from European capitals – POLITICO

The Commission President said in her speech that discussions on associate membership would focus on deeper cooperation in the areas of AI, climate and energy policy, as well as strengthening shared work between the European Commission and the Canadian government as well as “Parliament to Parliament” and “Court to Court”, a reference to the European Court of Justice and the Supreme Court of Canada.

Such status, she said, would only be open “to our closest partners outside of Europe, who are ready to open a new frontier together – and to chart the path together, to think beyond the terms of our current partnership, towards the most ambitious vision we can build”.

Von der Leyen’s use of the term associate member — which she first mentioned in September — is likely to offend some EU capitals after a group of countries led by Germany objected to the inclusion of a reference to the term in a joint EU-Canada statement that was seen by POLITICO and is due to be released Friday.

After days of negotiations, EU countries opted for softer language to describe the two sides’ future relations, including the “Alliance for the Future” — the term used by the Canadian side — as well as an “even closer association…without full membership.”

EU diplomats told POLITICO that while capitals support the broader goal of closer ties with Canada, they are reluctant to offer a status that has never been proposed before and whose legal contours remain undefined. Berlin had previously offered Ukraine associate membership status, including specific privileges such as observer status with the European Commission, but this attempt was rejected.

Responding to reports that EU countries would abandon the term “associate member,” Carney said Tuesday: “The good news is that specific names or nomenclature don’t matter. What matters is the difference it will make in the lives of Canadians…and Canada as a whole will become a more independent and sovereign nation, so that we can live our lives on our own terms.”