BRUSSELS, September 26 — The pitch landed in Brussels with the force of something new, and it has a name that does not yet exist in any European treaty: Canada as the European Union’s first “associate member.” Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney, visiting the European Union, made clear that Canada is seeking a “unique alliance” with Europe.
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen went further in her State of the Union address, calling for EU-Canada relations to be taken “to the highest level possible” and giving the ambition its striking label. There is a catch, and it is a legal one.
The term “associate membership” does not formally exist in the EU Treaties or in the EU’s enlargement framework. Conventional EU membership would require Canada to submit a formal application, obtain candidate status and then embark on a demanding technical accession process, all requiring the unanimous agreement of the EU Member States. The EU Treaties envisage EU membership for European countries only.
A Menu of Options, None of Them Simple
A second possibility would be deepening Canada’s economic integration within the EU’s Single Market, along the lines of arrangements the EU has with EFTA countries. That path carries a familiar trade-off: extensive alignment with EU legislation and Single Market rules without a formal say in EU decision-making. A third possibility is a genuinely new, values-based form of association designed for like-minded partners outside Europe.
Rather than making access to the Single Market the defining feature, such a model could focus on areas where the EU and Canada already have strong strategic convergence, including foreign and security policy, defence, critical raw materials, energy security, digital and tech, research and innovation, and economic security. Carney has also pointed to easing the movement of people as an area for closer cooperation.
Such a model would allow Canada to meaningfully participate in some areas of the Single Market and in certain EU policies, programmes and structures, including non-voting participation at Council meetings, building on Ukraine’s similar participation in areas of mutual interest. Canada would stand with the EU on critical issues, particularly foreign and security policy, without undertaking the enormous task of aligning with the EU acquis.
Not a Shortcut
In some ways this would resemble the gradual integration already taking place with the EU’s current candidate countries, but it should not be considered a shortcut. Canada could meet the Copenhagen criteria relatively swiftly, whereas the 10 candidate countries standing in line face a much more demanding process of political and economic transformation and regulatory alignment. Actual EU membership is not on the table for Canada.
What is envisaged is a new layer of structured integration for deeper association with like-minded non-European allies. The commentary was published by CEPS on 24 September 2026.
What to watch next: whether Brussels and Ottawa turn the phrase into a formal framework, and whether the EU’s member states — whose unanimous consent any treaty change would require — show appetite for a category the treaties do not yet contain.
