US President Donald Trump has threatened to impose heavy tariffs on the European Union or restrict trade with the bloc if Brussels proceeds with plans to make Canada its first associate member.
Trump made the remarks on Wednesday after European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen proposed closer ties between the EU and Canada.
“I think it’s laughable,” Trump told reporters, adding that the move could be considered a “hostile act”.
Trump said the United States could impose “very serious tariffs” or stop trading with Europe on several goods if the proposal was deemed hostile.
Von der Leyen made the proposal during her annual address to the European Parliament in Strasbourg, where Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney is due to speak on Thursday.
She called for Canada and the EU to move beyond their existing trade relationship towards a broader alliance covering technology, defence, energy and economic security.
“I would like to work with you on opening the door for Canada to be the first associate member of the EU,” von der Leyen told Carney, drawing a standing ovation from lawmakers.
The proposed cooperation would cover areas including artificial intelligence, critical minerals, batteries, cyber security, energy and Arctic projects.
What Associate Membership Could Mean
EU treaties do not currently provide for an “associate member” status.
The concept was first proposed by German Chancellor Friedrich Merz for Ukraine. Under that proposal, an associate member could attend EU summits and have representation in the European Commission while lacking full voting rights.
Tobias Cremer, a German European lawmaker who supports stronger EU-Canada cooperation, said the details of the proposed arrangement remained unclear.
Any new partnership between the EU and a third country would also require approval from the bloc’s member states.
The EU and Canada already have extensive economic ties through the Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement, which removed almost all tariffs between them.
According to the originating report by Channels Television, trade in goods and services between the two sides has increased by more than 80 per cent since 2016.
Carney has been seeking closer relationships with European partners as trade tensions between Canada and the United States continue.
The Canadian prime minister is expected to address the European Parliament before travelling back to Canada ahead of an EU-Canada summit scheduled for Montreal next month.
