WARMINGTON: Europe is ready to welcome Canada, but do Canadians want this?

· Toronto Sun

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And just like that, Canadians are about to become Europeans?

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“I would like to work with you on opening the door for Canada being the first associate member of the European Union,” European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen told the European Parliament in Strasbourg, France, on Wednesday.

Okay, associate Europeans? Whatever you call it, it’s not just a rumour anymore!

As Europe opens the door to a form of Canadian membership, Carney appears to be slamming the door on repairing the massive damage from the previous relationship with President Donald J. Trump’s America.

And, perhaps, nailing it shut?

Meanwhile, von der Leyen was not vague about what Europe has planned with Canada. This is no longer something being floated. From the war in Ukraine to the Arctic, Europe’s top leader is on record about very big plans.

“We will move from the CETA (Canada-European Union Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement to an alliance for the future, to create a common prosperity and economic security space,” she said. “We will work on intelligent manufacturing. We will create a tech alliance. We will integrate defence industrial bases. We will make the Arctic a flagship joint project. We will work on energy, critical minerals, and batteries, on AI quantum, cyber and economic security.”

This deal is bigger than Lake America

She was not vague: Manufacturing. A tech alliance. Military bases. Energy, critical minerals, Artificial intelligence. In other words, the future. This seems bigger than Trump renaming Lake Ontario to Lake America.

It can no longer be batted away as nothing. All of those things on von der Leyen’s list will be noticed in America and when she mentions a “flagship” Arctic joint project, it will get both Trump’s attention and Russia’s Vladimir Putin’s too. Move over European-run Greenland. Canada’s north is in Europe’s sights as well.

But all of what was said in France Wednesday is a step in a new direction for Canada and not something Canadians have voted for. At the end of her address, there is video of a big hug between her and Carney, who is scheduled to speak there Thursday. Carney, however, has not addressed Canada’s parliament in months and has not gone to the Canadian public to get a mandate on joining the EU in any capacity or to sell Canada’s airports to international entities or even walk away from many decades of trade relations with America.

Things are happening fast

But Carney seems to be hot in political circles now. Polls show him to be popular with the Canadian public, and he’s fresh off an international Canada Investment Summit where he claims to have arranged $500-billion in new investment and boasted about having former Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper close the show with the message that the PM and his team had “no choice” but to walk away from talks with the Americans, who Bryan Passifiume reported actually were hired to run this meeting.

While this cozy relationship between Liberals and Conservatives through the lens of patriotism and non-partisanship is being lauded by some in the media, many Canadians also wonder what Canada could end up looking like if there is no effective opposition in place that stands in the middle of the road of making new arrangements with no partners to make sure it’s the best thing for the country.

All of this change is happening with breakneck speed.

Carney, the former Bank of Canada and Bank of England Chair and patron of the World Economic Forum, does not hide that he is heading the country in new directions. He has already met with China’s leaders and opened up trade under the banner of what he called a “New World Order.”

That New World Order for Canada is now heading to Europe — in the same week Carney signed a 100-year agreement with Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy that includes investments in drone and military t echnology and training their pilots in Canada.

Will Canadians get a vote?

“In Strasbourg to deepen Canada’s relationship with the EU,” Carney posted to X Wednesday morning with video of him stepping off the plane in France. “We see the benefits of a stronger partnership — to our economies, our security, and our mutual sovereignty. We’re working fast to forge it.”

But when will Canadians get a say in this?

This is just one of the many questions on this topic. Do Canadians want to be so connected to Europe? Carney has in the past said he considered himself a European, but Canadians do not refer to themselves this way, the same way they don’t think of themselves as Americans. Carney has, since the spring, been talking about the “rupture” and end of the traditional trading relationship with America post Trump’s 51st state talk.

Last month, Carney pulled his negotiators from trade talks in Washington and now he is in Europe talking with leaders about a closer alliance with Europe. The fine print of any deal with Europe will have to be scrutinized closely to see what it actually means for Canadian business, finance and citizens. What will the red tape look like? Will Canada have freer access to invest, work and live in Europe, and will Europeans have easier access to do the same in Canada?

What will security look like and how will America react to all of this? Could access to our neighbour find new rules?

Interesting times ahead. As people await a Trump Truth Social post in response, all eyes will also be on Carney’s speech tomorrow.

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