Canada-EU alliance isn’t meant to be a US rival with ‘better manners,’ Carney says

By Hanna Ziady, CNN

London (CNN) — Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney took a veiled swipe at US President Donald Trump on Thursday, insisting that his proposal to deepen ties with the European Union wasn’t aimed at creating a new, more polite geopolitical bloc.

“I’m not proposing a third bloc in order to become a great power rival, only with better manners,” he told EU lawmakers in France.

“We do not seek power to dominate others. On the contrary, we are pursuing resilience so no one can control our open markets, impair our sovereignty, threaten territorial integrity or undermine our freedoms, our democracies, our rule of law.”

During a speech in which he occasionally spoke in French, Carney laid out the case for closer cooperation to build resilience against what he called “new storms,” citing climate change, the weaponization of trade and the erosion of democratic norms.

“Europe and Canada are stronger together,” he said.

Carney’s comments come a day after European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen proposed that Canada become the bloc’s first “associate member,” provoking a fresh tariff threat from Trump.

– This is a developing story and will be updated.

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