Carney to Address EU Parliament as Trump Threatens Tariffs Over Canada Membership Bid

Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney is set to address the European Parliament on Thursday, a day after European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen proposed making Canada the bloc's first associate member — an overture that drew an immediate threat of retaliatory tariffs from U.S. President Donald Trump.

Speaking in Charlotte, North Carolina, Trump said he would respond to the proposal by imposing "very heavy tariffs" on Europe if he judged the move to be ill-intentioned. "If it's a good intention, that's fine. If it's a bad intention, we'll put very heavy tariffs on Europe," he said, adding that Washington could cut off trade with Europe in certain areas. He dismissed the prospect of Canadian associate membership as "laughable" and described Canada as a "terrible trade partner."

Von der Leyen's proposal, announced Wednesday, would create a status that does not currently exist in the EU's treaties. She said Europe wants to take its relationship with Canada to "the highest level possible," moving beyond the existing free trade agreement toward an "Alliance for the Future" built around a "common prosperity and economic security space." Carney, seated in the front row of the parliament chamber, nodded and rose to embrace von der Leyen as lawmakers gave the proposal a standing ovation.

The two sides are expected to discuss the proposed relationship in more detail when Carney hosts EU leaders for a Canada-EU summit in Montreal on Oct. 29-30.

For generations, Canada has built its economy around integration with the United States, sending roughly 70 percent of its exports south. Trump's tariffs, demands for economic concessions and repeated talk of making Canada the 51st state have pushed Ottawa to reduce that dependence and seek deeper economic, security and political ties across the Atlantic. Canada has retaliated against U.S. tariffs and rejected demands Carney says threaten Canadian sovereignty. Europe, by contrast, shelved retaliation and accepted tariffs of up to 15 percent on most of its exports to the U.S.

Canada has already taken a significant step toward European integration, becoming the first non-European country to join the EU's 150-billion-euro SAFE defense procurement program, which gives Canadian companies access to joint procurement as Europe raises defense spending. The two sides have also discussed closer cooperation on energy, critical minerals, artificial intelligence and digital trade.

Jonathan Wilkinson, Canada's ambassador-designate to the EU, said Wednesday that Ottawa is not seeking full membership because that would require surrendering some sovereignty. Instead, he said, Canada wants "to get as close as we possibly can" to Europe while increasing its independence. Exactly what associate membership would entail remains to be negotiated.

Carney has repeatedly urged middle powers to resist economic coercion. At the World Economic Forum in Davos in January, he warned that when countries negotiate alone with a dominant power, "we negotiate from weakness. We accept what is offered." Trump rebuked him the next day, and Thursday's speech could further strain the relationship.

Daniel Béland, a political-science professor at McGill University in Montreal, said the Trump administration's policies and rhetoric are pushing both Canada and the EU to imagine a world without strong U.S. leadership. He suggested Carney may avoid naming Trump on Thursday while leaving little doubt about the target of his broader argument. "He knows that, beyond Europe, the world will be watching, including the White House," Béland said.

Nelson Wiseman, a professor emeritus at the University of Toronto, said Carney's handling of Trump has heightened European interest in the Canadian leader. "Carney's shrewdness in dealing with Trump has captured Europe's attention," Wiseman said, adding that Europeans have long regarded Canada as a country that understands the United States particularly well.