EU, Canada forge first transatlantic security pact shifting from US reliance

At a time when the United States is retreating from longstanding security commitments and threatening allies, Canada and the European Union (EU) on Monday signed a security and defence partnership agreement.

Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney said that the partnership is part of a commitment to “build ever-stronger alliances to” support security and prosperity of not just Canada but its partners as well.

The EU is on the path of rearmament in the wake of the Russian security threat and antagonistic stand of Trump — the US president has vowed to annex Canada and make it the 51st US state. Canada has now joined such rearmament efforts.

The Nato Summit is scheduled to be held in the Dutch capital of The Hague on Tuesday and Wednesday. The summit is likely to be dominated by efforts to keep US President Donald Trump in good humour. Unlike recent summits that saw allies converging to support Ukraine in the war with Russia, the issue is set to be marginal this time and the focus is set to be on pledges to increased defence spending.

Carney has also committed to raise Canada’s defence spending to 2 per cent of the GDP within a year, which is the minimum aspirational spending of Nato members. However, Trump has asked Nato members to raise that to 5 per cent.

What is in the Canada-EU pact?

For Carney, the idea behind the Canada-EU pact is to reduce the country’s dependence on the United States in the wake of Trump’s aggression. Europe has a similar objective as the continent has been shaken by not just Trump’s withdrawal from security commitments but also by his embrace of Russia.

With the invasion of Ukraine and shadow war on the continent, Russia has plunged Europe in the worst security crisis since the World War II.

The pact will make Canada a part in the EU’s new defense spending programs under its the $1.25-trillion ReArm Europe initiative and its Security Action for Europe (SAFE) plan. Under the ReArm Europe initiative, EU is making once-in-a-generation defence spending surge to procure weapons and defence systems, improve defences, and develop hybrid warfare capabilities.

The pact will allow Canadian companies to be part of the initiative. The pact will also allow Canada to draw from the $174 billion SAFE fund, which is a loan instrument to finance procurements and other activities under the initiative.

“While Nato remains the cornerstone of our collective defense, this partnership will allow us to strengthen our preparedness faster and better — to invest more and smarter,” European Council President Antonio Costa said.

EU chief Ursula von der Leyen said that the Canada-EU pact would be good for the transatlantic security.

“It’s just the beginning. It will be good for our industries, it will be good for our people, and it will be good for the transatlantic security tool," said Von der Leyen.