Canada and the European Union opened a new era of transatlantic co-operation Monday with the official signing of a security and defence partnership at a joint summit in Brussels.
The agreement commits Canada and Europe to collaboration on defence and is a step toward Canada participating in the continent’s massive new defence procurement program, known as ReArm Europe.
Prime Minister Mark Carney, who travelled to Brussels for the Canada-EU Summit, is pursuing more options for defence procurement as Canada seeks to reduce its reliance on the United States.
Carney met with European Council President António Costa and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen at the summit, before the final deal was signed.
Costa said Canada and the EU are “looking at the world through the same lens” and this meeting has taken the partnership to a new level.
Von der Leyen told Carney he was “here among friends.” She said Canada and the EU are two strong democracies bound by historic ties and connected by a “dynamic, fair and open” trade partnership.
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She said the EU wants not just to reaffirm the friendship and partnership with Canada but also to reshape it. She said the agreement is the “most comprehensive” ever completed.
“We know we can count on you and you can count on us,” she said.
Carney said the leaders are putting into practice some of what they discussed at the G7 and have been working on for years. Carney said the deal is crucial for Canada and “shows a way forward.”
Under the terms of the agreement, Canada and the EU will hold an annual “security and defence dialogue” involving top officials.
The agreement also commits both partners to expanding co-operation in support of Ukraine, improving Canadian military mobility in Europe and enhancing maritime co-operation in regions of “mutual interest” like the Indo-Pacific.
Canada will need to sign a second agreement with the European Commission before it can take part in the 150-billion-euro ReArm Europe initiative.
The security and defence agreement also pledges further collaboration on emerging issues in cybersecurity, foreign interference, disinformation and outer space policy.
Carney also met with Belgian Prime Minister Bart De Wever ahead of the Canada-EU Summit.
De Wever said that Canada’s partnership with the EU is vital now because “we’ve woken up in a world that doesn’t look that friendly anymore.”
A government official briefing reporters on the trip said the partnership is expected to make procurement easier and more affordable, while also allowing Canada to diversify its sources of equipment.
On Tuesday, Carney travels to The Hague for the NATO summit, where member nations will decide whether to fully endorse a substantial increase in the defence spending target, from two per cent of GDP to five per cent.
Carney said earlier this month Canada would increase its defence spending this year to meet the two per cent target for the first time since it was established in 2014.
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