The European Union and Canada concluded a two-day summit in Montreal on Friday, pledging to deepen their partnership and reaffirm support for Ukraine.
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and European Council President António Costa joined Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney for the 21st EU-Canada Summit, where leaders announced the launch of an "Alliance for the Future" to strengthen economic and strategic ties . The agreement includes cooperation on digital trade, AI, critical materials, and supercomputers, alongside measures to facilitate student exchanges and instant money transfers .
Ukraine was a central focus of the discussions. Both sides reaffirmed their commitment to stepping up pressure on Russia and supporting Kyiv, including through reforms and Euro-Atlantic integration . Carney announced Canada would contribute €500 million toward the EU’s €90 billion loan facility for Ukraine, praising the mechanism for leveraging immobilized Russian assets .
The summit also addressed broader security concerns. Carney emphasized the need to reduce dependence on private satellite networks like Elon Musk’s Starshield, citing recent disruptions to Ukrainian military operations . He ruled out direct talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin but acknowledged that leader-to-leader conversations could be "constructive" under the right conditions .
Leaders described the EU-Canada relationship as "tight" and pledged to build the "deepest possible partnership," despite internal EU debates over the proposed "associate membership" label for Canada . Carney dismissed concerns about tailoring his messaging to avoid upsetting Donald Trump, stating he speaks "in Canada’s interests" .
