00:00Canada could become the European Union's first ever associate member.
00:04European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen has proposed creating this
00:08new status as Canada looks to forge much closer ties with Europe.
00:12It doesn't actually mean Canada's joining the EU.
00:15Associate membership doesn't even exist under current EU treaties,
00:18so it's not entirely clear what it would involve.
00:21Prime Minister Mark Carney says Canada wants a unique alliance, not full membership.
00:26The idea is to bring the two economies closer in areas like trade, AI, energy, critical minerals and defence.
00:33They already have a trade deal and Canada's become the first non-European country
00:37to join the EU's 150 billion euro safe defence programme.
00:42And there's a big reason Ottawa is looking across the Atlantic, the US.
00:46Canada's relationship with its biggest trading partner has deteriorated sharply under President Donald Trump
00:51with their trade war escalating.
00:53Around 70% of Canadian exports still go to the US.
00:58So Canada isn't about to become the EU's 28th member,
01:01but it could become a kind of close friend that Europe's never had before.
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