Canada and the EU - More Than What One Might Think

As an EU citizen in Canada, I definitely was curious at the higher number of proposals

for Canada to join the EU after tensions started rising with many of our western and

eastern trading partners. This was a larger point of discussion in early 2025, though I

decided to revisit the topic now, as I have been much more invested in EU policies as I

started looking at them through the lens of a politician.

Firstly, we should ask if Canada can even join the European Union? In short, no. Article

49 of the Treaty on European Union states that “any European State which respects the

values referred to in Article 2 and is committed to promoting them may apply to become

a member of the Union.” While the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms enshrines

many of the same rights and values as Article 2 of the TEU does, the country is most

definitely not a European country, therefore it is automatically disqualified from joining

(Morocco was already excluded on this basis).

Canadian prime minister Mark Carney also stated the country has no intentions to join the

EU, regardless whether it is eligible, or not (according to CBC). Outside of joining the EU, Canada is a founding member of NATO, which involves many EU countries, but it does have even closer partnerships with the union that most people (including me) might not be aware about. “The EU is Canada’s second-largest trading partner after the United States... and Canada is the EU’s 12th largest goods trading partner,” according to the European Commission. The trade of services between the two sides also totalled €48.9 billion (80 billion CAD). This huge volume of trade prompted the creation of the EU-Canada Strategic Partnership Agreement, and the Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement in 2016, with both of them going into effect in 2017.

The SPA has greatly increased dialogue between the EU since going into effect, and the

CETA has promoted further trade between the two bodies. In addition, with increased

cooperation and economic threats from abroad, a new Security and Defence Partnership

has been established to help European and NATO defence as a whole, along with the

EU-Canada Strategic Partnership of the Future, which aims to tackle new issues in the

world, such as digital trade, climate policy and the exchange of urgently needed raw

materials (as stated on the Prime Minister of Canada’s webpage).

Today, cooperation between the EU and Canada is up, which just shows bright prospects

for the future! Many of these developments are new, though I’m sure the world will look

on eagerly to see how these two trading giants will grow further into the future.