Moreno Sánchez says Canada's associate membership can be de facto
Javier Moreno SánchezMember of the European Parliament and chair of its delegation for relations with Canada, interviewed by EUobserver
In an EUobserver interview the day before the Montreal summit, Moreno Sánchez said he prefers that Canada become an associate member and that it could be a de facto status whatever its legal basis.
“I prefer for Canada to be an associate member, but I don't care about the legal basis; it can be de facto associate membership.”
Interview
Other statements by Javier Moreno Sánchez in this case
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Where this statement fits
Should Canada become an associate member of the European Union?
In her State of the European Union address on 16 September 2026, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said she would like to work with Prime Minister Mark Carney on opening the door for Canada to be the first associate member of the European Union, as part of moving beyond the existing CETA trade agreement to what she called an Alliance for the Future. Carney, present as an invited guest, told the European Parliament the following day that Canada welcomes the ambition, while attributing the associate-member phrase to von der Leyen rather than adopting it, and promised debates and a vote in the Canadian Parliament on the final structure. Conservative leader Pierre Poilievre set red lines against Canadians paying taxes to Brussels, following European laws they did not vote on, or adopting European immigration policy. United States President Donald Trump said that if he judged the arrangement a hostile act he would impose heavy tariffs on Europe or curtail trade. No agreement has been signed, and associate membership is not a status defined in the European Union's treaties.
Source and context
Interview
About this source
EUobserver interview with Javier Moreno Sánchez, chair of the European Parliament's delegation for relations with Canada, published October 28, 2026, the day before the EU-Canada summit in Montreal. He discusses the dispute over the associate-membership label and what the status could mean.
Archived copy (opens in a new tab)Before the quotation
Asked whether von der Leyen had made a mistake by announcing a category she could not deliver, Moreno Sánchez said making the announcement was positive.
After the quotation
He said the concept is not in the EU treaties, but that neither the euro nor the Schengen area had been at first, and that political will can create it.
How this statement is classified
The label describes this statement's response within the context above.
Why this label?
Relative to whether Canada should become an associate member of the European Union, Moreno Sánchez says he prefers that outcome and dismisses the legal objections to the label as secondary. That is support for the proposal, as in his September 18 statement.
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Read the full caseCarleton's Achim Hurrelmann doubts an associate-member status for Canada can be set up soon
“I'm not sure if a status with that name can be established for Canada any time soon”Read statement
Poilievre says the summit cut no tariffs and warns against aligning Canada with European policies
“Worse, there was lots of talk at the summit about aligning Canada with the insane European taxes, debt, immigration and anti-oil and gas policies that have left parts of Europe bankrupt and burning.”Read statement
German ambassador says the two sides should give the associate-member label real content
“The president of the commission and the prime minister are using the term associated membership, so let's fill that name with life and see what it can be about. I think we should not be distracted by the label in question from the important content that has been agreed today”Read statement
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The Dispute Index. "Moreno Sánchez says Canada's associate membership can be de facto". First published: 2026-10-31. Last updated: 2026-10-31. https://disputeindex.com/events/7443-in-an-euobserver-interview-the-day-before-the