Canada, France deepen strategic partnership as Ottawa pivots towards Europe
Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney and French President Emmanuel Macron on Sunday agreed to deepen a strategic partnership across space, defence, energy and business, as Canada moves closer to Europe while its relations with the United States worsen.
The two leaders said their countries would step up cooperation in several areas, with Carney saying their space agencies and defence ministries would be asked to develop and share infrastructure, including launch systems and ground-based reception facilities. They also agreed to expand ties in energy, telecommunications, climate resilience and economic development.
The meeting came days after Carney backed the idea of Canada becoming the European Union's first associate member and said closer links with Europe would leave Canada less exposed to economic coercion by any one country. "Canada and Europe will build an alliance for the future that will strengthen our collective resilience so we can live our lives as we choose based on the values that we share," Carney said.
Macron described Carney's visit as a "historic moment" and said that, at a time of global turmoil, the two countries were affirming "our sovereignty, our freedom to decide" and their resolve to build closer ties. He also backed Canada's future involvement in the European Union. The Canadian government's push to reduce dependence on the US has gathered pace after US President Donald Trump imposed tariffs, sought economic concessions and repeatedly spoke of making Canada the 51st US state.
Macron welcomed Carney at the airport in Saint-Pierre-et-Miquelon, the French territory off the coast of Newfoundland that is home to about 5,800 people. "This is an important moment," Macron said on Saturday after arriving there. He said the talks "will allow us... to strengthen our bilateral economic ties and defense relationship". Macron also said the discussions were part of wider efforts by France to secure oil and gas supplies as the Iran war disrupts global energy markets and raises fears of higher prices for fuel and other essentials. "Canada is a country with significant resources of critical minerals and rare earths. It is also a major oil and natural gas producer," Macron said. "What we want to do is conclude agreements to secure more liquefied natural gas that can be shipped to Europe's Atlantic coast."
According to a statement from Carney's office, the leaders also discussed aerospace, energy, critical minerals and advanced technologies such as quantum computing, satellites and supercomputing. Sunday's meeting also followed Trump's announcement of a deal on Greenland that would expand the US military presence there while keeping the island under Danish control, after months of threats to seize the semiautonomous territory of a NATO ally. Macron welcomed that agreement on Saturday, saying, "Danish sovereignty is being respected, international law is being respected. Anything that helps ease tensions is a good thing." Overall, the talks marked another step in Canada's effort to build deeper economic, security and political ties with Europe.
