Prime Minister Mark Carney is courting closer ties with Europe as opposition from major EU powers has reportedly forced the removal of a proposed membership designation from a draft summit declaration.
Meanwhile, Brussels is pressing ahead with carbon tariffs that will affect an estimated $2.8 billion in annual Canadian exports.
Germany, Italy, France and Greece all objected to a draft EU declaration that referred to Canada as an ‘associate member’. The draft has been amended to remove the reference to Canada as an ‘associate member’ ahead of this week’s summit in Montreal, Euronews reported.
Carney has downplayed the dispute.
“It doesn’t matter about specific names or nomenclature,” he said Tuesday.
“This is the launch of further formal discussions [and] negotiations over the course of the next year,” he added.
