The EU and Canada have been deepening bilateral ties, including the recent completion of a strategic partnership agreement and a comprehensive economic and trade agreement. Given the crisis in Ukraine and both countries' rising tensions with Russia, this effort could not be more timely.
NEW YORK – Forget, for a moment, Barack Obama, Angela Merkel, David Cameron, François Hollande, and all dreams of a renaissance in traditional transatlantic relations. Far from the catwalks of vanity in the White House, Berlin’s Chancellery, 10 Downing Street, or the Élysée Palace, two often-underestimated transatlantic actors – the European Union and Canada – have embarked on an important and timely initiative.
The recently announced EU-Canada Strategic Partnership Agreement (SPA) aims to deepen bilateral ties in “all fields of cooperation,” including education, transport, energy, the Arctic, and science and technology, as well as provide for enhanced foreign-policy cooperation, with a focus on crisis management and security. While the technical and legal details still need to be ironed out, the SPA – together with the recently negotiated bilateral Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA) – highlights the growing importance of the EU-Canada relationship.
One of the most significant areas of potential cooperation has not yet received sufficient attention: Canadian energy exports to Europe. But, given Russia’s recent incursion into Ukraine, which has forced Western European countries to reconsider their heavy reliance on Russian energy, that may be about to change.
NEW YORK – Forget, for a moment, Barack Obama, Angela Merkel, David Cameron, François Hollande, and all dreams of a renaissance in traditional transatlantic relations. Far from the catwalks of vanity in the White House, Berlin’s Chancellery, 10 Downing Street, or the Élysée Palace, two often-underestimated transatlantic actors – the European Union and Canada – have embarked on an important and timely initiative.
The recently announced EU-Canada Strategic Partnership Agreement (SPA) aims to deepen bilateral ties in “all fields of cooperation,” including education, transport, energy, the Arctic, and science and technology, as well as provide for enhanced foreign-policy cooperation, with a focus on crisis management and security. While the technical and legal details still need to be ironed out, the SPA – together with the recently negotiated bilateral Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA) – highlights the growing importance of the EU-Canada relationship.
One of the most significant areas of potential cooperation has not yet received sufficient attention: Canadian energy exports to Europe. But, given Russia’s recent incursion into Ukraine, which has forced Western European countries to reconsider their heavy reliance on Russian energy, that may be about to change.