EU Ambassadors Disagree Over Use of 'Associate Member' Label for Canada Ahead of Montreal Summit
EU member states remain divided on whether to grant Canada 'associate membership' status, with several countries objecting to the term just days before a summit in Montreal.
EU diplomats said the bloc could not reach consensus on wording that would offer Canada "associate membership" status in a joint statement ahead of a summit in Montreal. After talks between ambassadors on Monday failed to produce agreement, the EU invoked a silence procedure on Tuesday, which would automatically adopt a new text unless any member objected by midday. Germany, leading a group that wants the phrase removed, was among at least four countries that broke the procedure before the deadline, prompting another meeting of EU ambassadors on Wednesday, one day before the summit begins. The dispute highlights ongoing divisions within the EU over the concept, which European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen proposed to Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney in a State of the Union address in Strasbourg. Four EU diplomats told POLITICO that von der Leyen had not consulted member states before raising the idea. Von der Leyen, European Council President António Costa, EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas and several commissioners are scheduled to travel to Montreal for talks with Carney on Thursday and Friday, covering trade, energy, education and Arctic cooperation.