Canada and the EU to move closer due to Trump…..

Donald Trump’s Foreign Policy contiunes to push countries to seek trade relations AWAY from America….

Those countries are NOT leaving America….

But while Trump is doing ‘his thing’?

There WILL BE little withdrawals from the strong dependence on the American economic engine…

 

The European Union has invited Canada to work toward becoming its first “associate member,” a title meant to underscore the nation’s growing closeness to the 27-country bloc as both face deteriorating relationships with the United States.

President Trump has waged a relentless trade war with Canada, challenging its economy. The United States has pulled back support for NATO and Ukraine, leaving the European Union scrambling to shore up its defenses. That vacuum has left both the bloc and the nation looking for new partners as the alliances established after World War II shift.

“We must urgently reimagine our partnerships,” said Ursula von der Leyen, the president of the European Union’s executive arm, on Wednesday during a major annual speech in Strasbourg, France. Mark Carney, the prime minister of Canada, was seated directly to Ms. von der Leyen’s left as she made her address.

“I would like to work with you on opening the door for Canada to be the first associate member of the European Union,” she told him…..

…

“It’s a big swing, politically and rhetorically,” said Jörn Fleck, a senior director focused on Europe at The Atlantic Council in Washington. “This is obviously signaling toward the U.S.” and “it’s also signaling to potential allies that the E.U. is willing to get more creative.”

Mr. Carney gave a headline-grabbing speech at the World Economic Forum meeting in Davos, Switzerland, this year during which he argued that the world order that emerged from the Cold War was facing a “rupture, not a transition,” and that “middle powers must act together because if we’re not at the table, we’re on the menu.”

Wednesday’s announcement was a vivid demonstration of that strategy.

Mujtaba Rahman, managing director for Europe at the Eurasia Group, said that talking of an associate member label sent an “interesting signal” to Canada, but one that for now is likely more symbolic than practical….

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