Why an EU “associate membership” is the wrong Canada story

NPR reports that European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen made the proposal during her annual State of the Union address, with Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney sitting in the European Parliament as her special guest.[2]Writing for the Lowy Institute, Damjanovic says that both leaders devoted much greater attention to developing an "Alliance for the Future" than to associate membership itself.[1] She notes that EU membership "remains open only to "European states"[1].According to Damjanovic, Carney said the alliance "would create a beacon for other democracies" and be "open enough that others can join".[1] She writes that Australia "should pay close attention"[1]. In her view, the Arctic's role as "a flagship joint project"[1]might help explain why Canada has emerged as the first candidate[1].At a Dalhousie University workshop, political scientist Ruben Zaiotti called associate membership "a category that doesn't exist yet."[3] Dal News reports that he raised concerns about a loss of sovereignty over final decision making on a series of policy areas.[3]Dalhousie postdoctoral fellow Noah Fry told the workshop that "Since CETA's provisional implementation, Canadian exports to the EU haven't changed much.[3]The Council on Foreign Relations reports that Donald Trump called the proposal "laughable"[4]. It also reports that several EU governments were reportedly furious that they had not been consulted beforehand[4].