The EU reacted coldly to the Canadian Prime Minister's proposal for an alliance

MOSCOW, September 16 - RIA Novosti. EU member states reacted coldly and warily to Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney's proposal to create a “unique alliance” with the European bloc, the Financial Times writes, citing several unnamed European diplomats.

Earlier, the Wall Street Journal wrote that Carney proposed making the country an associate member of the EU, thereby accelerating the turn towards Europe after the failure of trade negotiations with the United States. Carney himself later said that Canada was going to negotiate with the EU not about membership in this association, but about some kind of “unique alliance.”

“EU capitals coldly greeted Canada’s proposal to create a “unique alliance” with the bloc... The attempt to win over the sense of smell failed to convince governments wary of granting Ottawa preferential market access,” the publication writes.

As diplomats noted, skeptics instead suggested focusing on better implementation of existing agreements with Canada. There is also consensus in the bloc on the need to expand cooperation with Canadian arms manufacturers and companies extracting critical minerals, the Financial Times adds.

“We love Canadians, but everyone soberly assesses what is possible and what is not... The phrase “everything except membership” sounds good, but the idea itself seemed insufficiently developed... However, I don’t blame him for trying,” the publication quotes one of the diplomats as saying.

Another diplomat noted that the stance of some EU capitals was also being influenced by concerns about how US President Donald Trump might respond to a significant strengthening of relations with Canada.