Canada, EU deepen defense partnership as Ottawa shifts from U.S.

Canada, EU deepen defense partnership as Ottawa shifts from U.S.
by Darryl Coote
Washington DC (UPI) Jun 24, 2025

Canada and the European Union have agreed to deepen their security and defense relationship, as Ottawa seeks new partnerships to reduce its dependence on the United States under President Donald Trump.

Prime Minister Mark Carney signed the pact during a Canada-EU summit on Monday.

Antonio Costa, president of the European Council, the collegiate body of the 27-member bloc, said during a press conference following the summit that Canada and the EU are among the closest of allies and that they have agreed to take their strategic relationship to "an unprecedented level of closeness."

He called the signing of the agreement "a turning point in our history."

The agreement, he said, is a reflection of their mutual commitment to peace while opening new avenues for defense cooperation.

A statement from Ottawa said it will help deliver on building defense capabilities more economically and efficiently.

"While NATO remains the cornerstone of our collective defense, this partnership will allow us to strengthen our preparedness faster and better -- to invest more and smarter," Costa said.

The agreement comes less than two months after Carney and the Liberal Party won a minority government in Ottawa during an election dominated by Trump and the antagonistic stance he took toward the United States' closest ally.

Carney campaigned on standing up to Trump and the tariffs the American president imposed on the Great White North. During the election campaign, Carney repeatedly said that Trump's actions were a "betrayal" and that there had been a fundamental shift in the U.S.-Canada relationship, and that Ottawa could no longer depend on Washington.

During the press conference Monday, Carney remarked that they were meeting at a time when the rules-based order of the world was under threat and that they were presented with two options: to nostalgically long for the old order or to build a new one through partnership.

"As the most European of the non-European countries, Canada looks first to the European Union to build a better world," he said. "And that's what today is about."

Canada and the EU are also launching negotiations across multiple areas, from digital policy to climate, to further deepen their relationship, he said.

"What we're committing to, from our perspective, Canada's perspective, is an ongoing process to an ever-closer partnership that will bring our people closer together," he said.