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Prime Minister Mark Carney will meet the French president this week, to highlight efforts to strengthen energy and defense ties with the European ally.
The Prime Minister’s Office announced Carney will visit Saint-Pierre-et-Miquelon, a French territory off the coast of Newfoundland and Labrador, on September 20 where he will meet with President Emmanuel Macron.
The PMO said the pair would discuss deepening the two countries’ partnership in “strategic sectors,” including aerospace, energy, critical minerals and advanced technologies such as quantum, satellites and supercomputers.
Carney’s planned visit comes as the Wall Street Journal reports that the prime minister is accelerating Canada’s move to Europe. It was reported that he even suggested to European leaders that Canada take the title: “Associate Member of the European Union.”
Global News has contacted the PMO, Macron’s office and the European Parliament for comment.
Carney’s visit to Macron is scheduled to take place just days after the prime minister met his British counterpart for the first time, British Prime Minister Andy Burnham.
Just like Macron, the two leaders are expected to discuss defence, security, energy and AI.
During his trip to Europe starting Tuesday, Carney will also address the European Parliament in Strasbourg and attend the state of the European Union address.
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Earlier this week, the EU ambassador to Canada said the bloc was drawing up a new partnership with Ottawa that was different from anything currently in place, but did not provide further details.
“What we have in mind is something different from what we have in other countries,” Geneviève Tuts said in an interview Wednesday with The Canadian Press. “It will be something unique.”
The partnership is still being developed, but Tuts said it would not be exactly the same as the agreements the EU has with neighboring countries such as Switzerland and the UK.
Finnish President Alexander Stubb, who speaks frequently with Carney, signaled support for Canada having stronger ties with the EU.
“Wouldn’t it be nice if Canada became the 28th state of the European Union and not the 51st state of the United States,” Stubb said in a speech in June.
The idea will be discussed when Carney visits this week, an invitation Tuts said was a rare gesture for a non-European leader.
It is hoped that there will be no agreement at the meeting, only discussions, but Tuts said Brussels would then consult with member states regarding the agreement. Canada will do the same with its provinces and territories. However, it is possible that an announcement could be made at the summit meeting at the end of October.
Carney has made no secret that he wants closer economic, security and political ties with the EU as Canada’s relations with the US continue to deteriorate amid the trade war.
“We will use the next few months to explore deepening that partnership in various areas and we will have more to say about that (next week) in Strasbourg,” Carney told reporters in Banff, Alta., last Thursday, as his cabinet gathered for a planning session.
Experts say the EU is “the most obvious partner” in diversifying Canada’s trade relationships.
Christian Leuprecht told Global News that just as Canada could benefit from procuring more of its military purchases from Europe as Canada attempts to significantly increase defense spending, Europe could also benefit from Canada’s supply of liquefied natural gas, oil and critical minerals.
On Saturday, President Donald Trump said Canada was “eager to reach a deal with the U.S.” and suggested a deal could be reached “soon” if Ottawa addressed its concerns about agricultural trade.
—with files from Alex Boutillier of Global News and The Canadian Press
© 2026 Global News, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.
