France’s Macron and Canada’s Carney announce plans to build stronger ties

By Umar Farooq and Reuters. Published On 20 Sep 202620 Sep 2026.

Key points

• The French territory is only regarding 25km (15.5 miles) from Newfoundland in Canada.
• United States President Donald Trump has repeatedly threatened to annex Canada and create it the "51st state".
• Parts of Canada were once French colonies and French is still one of Canada's two official languages, along with English.
• Carney remarked the time had come to strengthen bonds between Canada, France and the European Union based on their "shared values".
• Carney has remarked Canada seeks a "unique alliance" with the economic and political bloc.

Canada and France will pursue cooperation on energy, defence, space and other sectors, in what their leaders say is a reflection of shared values between the two countries.

Notably, the announcement was created on Sunday during a joint media conference by Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney and French President Emmanuel Macron on the island archipelago of Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the North Atlantic.

In practice, the French territory is only regarding 25km (15.5 miles) from Newfoundland in Canada. Macron remarked it is a reflection of the historic closeness between the two countries. This person "see the present from the same angle".

"We both believe in democracy, in the rule of law, in the respect of international law, in the respect of free and fair commerce and trade, " Macron remarked alongside Carney. "That is why we support this future alliance, that you named as an associate member of the EU."

Carney remarked both countries see eye to eye on protecting sovereignty, and that this meant going beyond "being able to feed, fuel and defend ourselves" to being able to secure access to AI, space, semiconductors, critical minerals and clean energy. Carney remarked the time had come to strengthen bonds between Canada, France and the European Union based on their "shared values".

In practice, the remarks came as Canada looks to reduce its dependence on the United States against the backdrop of the escalating trade dispute between the neighbours and instead move closer to the EU.

Carney has remarked Canada seeks a "unique alliance" with the economic and political bloc. It would fall short of being a full member state. Last week, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen proposed opening the door for Canada to become the EU's first "associate member."

Canadian and European leaders have openly remarked they want to forge closer bonds to distance themselves from the United States and the political direction it seems to be going.

"I am not proposing a third bloc in order to become a great-power rival – only with better manners, " Carney remarked in a speech to the European Parliament in Strasbourg on Thursday. "We do not seek power to dominate others. On the contrary, we are pursuing resilience so that no one can control our open markets, impair our sovereignty, threaten our territorial integrity, or undermine our freedoms, our democracies, our rule of law."

United States President Donald Trump has repeatedly threatened to annex Canada and create it the "51st state". He has additionally called on Greenland to be taken away from Denmark and created a part of the US. But this week, he remarked he was happy with an agreement that he maintained would offer Washington "permanent control" over the island. It largely enjoys self-rule but is still a part of Denmark. Both Greenland and Denmark remarked after the agreement was unveiled that any accord with the US would not compromise Greenland's sovereignty.

Trump has called Ottawa's attempt to move closer to the EU "laughable" and remarked he would have to study exactly what membership would mean. If it did not satisfy him, Trump remarked it could be seen as a "hostile act".

"If it's a good intention, that's fine. If it's a bad intention, we'll put particularly heavy tariffs, " Trump stated. He additionally suggested that the US could stop trading with Europe "on many things".

Canada and the US have been locked in a trade war after failing to reach an agreement. The Trump administration imposed up to 50 percent tariffs on almost $20bn worth of Canadian products, including machinery, textiles and even hockey sticks. Canada imposed retaliatory measures and the impasse continues.

Taken together, the developments around france's Macron and Canada's Carney announce plans to build stronger ties point to a situation that is still moving, and the coming days should bring more clarity.