Canada opens the door to deeper European defence and security partnership

Murray Brewster · CBC News

· Posted: Jun 23, 2025 4:00 AM EDT | Last Updated: 10 minutes ago

Canada and Europe volition beryllium drawn a small person unneurotic connected Monday arsenic Prime Minister Mark Carney signs a strategical defence and information concern with the European Union.

The statement volition unfastened the doorway for Canadian companies to participate in the $1.25-trillion ReArm Europe program, which is seen arsenic a measurement toward making Canada little reliant connected — and little susceptible to — the whims of the United States.

Eventually, it volition besides help the Canadian authorities spouse with different allied nations to bargain subject instrumentality nether what's known arsenic the SAFE program.

Further talks and agreements volition beryllium needed earlier some of those aspects go reality.

Carney has been signalling for months that his authorities is unhappy with spending arsenic overmuch arsenic 70 per cent of its subject instrumentality appropriation connected U.S.-made gear.

Other non-EU nations, including the United Kingdom, person already struck their ain strategical agreements. Australia signalled past week it has started negotiations connected a woody with Europe.

WATCH | Canada looks to spouse with defence companies extracurricular U.S.:

Much of the absorption has been connected the associated instrumentality procurement aspects of the impending deal. However, the U.K.'s agreement, made nationalist connected May 19, establishes a bid of organization links for situation management, maritime information and cybersecurity.

It is obscurity adjacent arsenic broad arsenic the NATO alliance. But fixed the increasing uncertainty implicit the reliability of the Trump administration, the concern is important.

"It could complement NATO. It's not needfully a substitute," said Stephen Saideman, who holds the Paterson Chair successful International Affairs astatine Carleton University successful Ottawa.

"It makes consciousness to enactment with the Europeans arsenic overmuch arsenic we tin connected defence," helium said. "Maybe if we bash this benignant of thing, NATO tin unrecorded adjacent if the United States pulls out."

NATO spending to beryllium debated

Carney volition beryllium attending the North Atlantic Treaty Organization acme in The Hague, successful the Netherlands, astir instantly aft signing the defence and information woody with the EU

The 32-member Western subject confederation is acceptable to statement raising the defence spending benchmark to a combined 5 per cent of a country's gross home merchandise (3.5 per cent for nonstop subject spending and an further 1.5 per cent for defence infrastructure).

Christian Leuprecht, a prof astatine the Royal Military College of Canada successful Kingston, Ont., said the mode the defence partnership and the ReArm Europe programme are acceptable up, they could not beryllium considered a replacement for NATO due to the fact that there's nary operational subject facet to the idiosyncratic arrangements.

However, a important facet of the U.K. woody involves strengthening co-operation done "exchanges connected situational consciousness and menace assessments successful areas of communal interest, including classified information."

The statement goes connected to accidental that "the U.K. and the EU volition research further measures to guarantee that classified accusation tin beryllium exchanged swiftly, safely and effectively" successful accordance with Britain's information of accusation laws. That's important due to the fact that the U.K. — similar Canada — is portion of the Five Eyes intelligence-sharing web that includes the United States.

It remains unclear, astatine the moment, whether Canada's woody volition incorporate akin provisions.

Leuprecht describes ReArm Europe arsenic a "cartel" with a ngo to thrust down prices of subject instrumentality done corporate procurement.

A large constituent of the EU strategy is the SAFE indebtedness programme that allows subordinate countries to get funds for subject instrumentality astatine much favourable rates than nonstop nationalist borrowing. It's intended for smaller countries with little fiscal capableness and little recognition ratings, Leuprecht said.

Canada wouldn't needfully person entree to that $235-billion fund, helium added. The objection mightiness beryllium if a non-EU state that needs the funds — for example, Ukraine (which is portion of the wide program) — is required to pat into it.

There are rules to the indebtedness programme that promote members to bargain European and spouse equipment.