// BBC WORLD NEWS — MONDO
Carney's new love-in with EU has everything to do with Trump
Carney is a guest of von der Leyen in Strasbourg this week
"Wouldn't it be lovely if Canada was the 28th state of the European Union rather than the 51st state of the United States?" asked Finland's President Alexander Stubb this summer.
The question was rather tongue-in-cheek. US President Donald Trump, who is currently locked in an escalating tariff tussle with Ottawa, has, on a number of occasions, declared his ambition to make Canada the 51st American state - causing deep offence amongst many Canadians.
Finland is one of the EU's 27 member states and a close ally of Canada as a fellow Arctic nation. Teasing tones aside, President Stubb put his finger squarely on the pulse of deepening EU-Canadian relations. "Canada is more Europe-minded than most Europeans!" is a smiling retort you often hear in Brussels at the moment.
On Sunday, Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney told reporters Canada was seeking a "unique alliance" with the EU.
And in a speech on Wednesday, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said she wanted to work "on opening the door" for Canada to be the EU's "associate member" - which would involve closer ties on various sectors including manufacturing and energy.
The catalyst for this very public, ardent new love-in is Donald Trump. Just the other day, the US president posted a map of North America on his Truth Social site, including Canada and Greenland - a territory that's part of EU country Denmark - all overlaid with the US flag.
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