Become Associate

• European Union leadership has supported a proposal to grant Canada "associate member" status to strengthen ties between the two regions. • Donald Trump has threatened to cut trade with the European Union in response to this specific proposal. • This tension follows Trump's aggressive use of tariffs and his threat to annex Greenland, which is a sovereign territory of EU member Denmark.

• European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen announced that the European Union wants to invite Canada to become its first associate member. • EU official Alexander Stubb suggested on June 3 that the bloc could expand to 40 states, listing Canada, the U.K., Turkey, Norway, and Iceland as potential candidates. • This deepening of ties aims to help middle powers band together to counter the rise of hard power and protect trade interests as tensions with the U.S. intensify.

• European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen invited Canada to become the first associate member of the European Union during her State of the Union address. • The proposal includes a new alliance between the EU and Ottawa focusing on energy, defense, technology, and critical raw materials. • This entirely new membership status would create a formal strategic partnership between the two regions to secure essential resources and security.