Canada Invited to Become EU’s First ‘Associate Member’ The European Union's invitation for Canada to become its first "associate member" has sent shockwaves through global politics.
The decision comes as Ottawa and Washington engage in an ongoing trade war, and it is less about reviving a decades old romance between the two neighbors than about the bloc's desire to reduce its reliance on the US.
In her annual state of the European Union address, Commission President Ursula von der Leyen stated that Brussels wants to bring Canada's relationship "to the highest level possible.