EU fails to agree on reference to associate member status for Canada — Politico Europe

In Brussels, Belgium, at least four EU countries, including Germany, objected to a draft statement mentioning the term “associate member” in relation to Canada. This derailed the silence procedure 48 hours before the EU-Canada summit in Montreal, Politico Europe reports.

Germany’s objections

On Monday, ambassadors of EU member states failed to agree on the text of the statement. The following day, a silence procedure was launched: the document was to be automatically approved without a formal meeting or vote if no country raised objections by noon.

According to two EU diplomats, Germany, which is seeking the complete removal of the term “associate member” from the text, was among at least four states that halted the procedure. The issue is to be discussed on Wednesday at the next meeting of EU ambassadors, one day before the summit begins.

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Summit in Montreal

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen proposed the idea of associate membership to Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney during her State of the Union speech in Strasbourg last month. Four EU diplomats told Politico Europe at the time that she had not consulted European capitals beforehand.

On Thursday and Friday, von der Leyen, European Council President António Costa, EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs Kaja Kallas, and ten European commissioners will travel to Montreal for a summit with Carney. The sides plan to deepen cooperation in trade, energy, education, and the Arctic.