CANADA - EU’s First Associate Member?

In her annual State of the European Union address, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said Canada and the EU would build on their existing free trade agreement, known as CETA, with a broader “Alliance for the Future” aimed at creating “a common prosperity and economic security space.”

“Above all, dear Mark, Europe and Canada believe in democracy,” von der Leyen said to [Canadian PM] Carney, who received a standing ovation at the European Parliament in Strasbourg, France.

A Canadian official familiar with the discussions told The Associated Press that Ottawa was exploring ties with the EU that could stop just short of membership.

Von der Leyen said the expanded partnership would cover advanced manufacturing, technology, defense production, the Arctic, energy, critical minerals, batteries, artificial intelligence, quantum computing, cybersecurity and economic security.

“This is a partnership not against anyone else, but for our common strength,” she said. “In short, we want to bring the relationship with Canada to the highest level possible.”

-apnews.com, 16 September 2026

Commentary: Distance no longer matters; economy and merchandise do. Canada’s preferential standing would be a shot in the arm for that country. Actually, Canada is closer to Europe in terms of culture, quality of life, individual freedom, and life expectancy than the USA, where crime, for example, is significantly higher than in Canada or Europe.

Canada, Australia, and New Zealand never needed a war of independence from Britain, but became independent for free.

There is little to no doubt that this developing relationship will be a win-win situation for the EU and Canada.

Here we must go back to the foundation of the development of the nations of the world. From the Bible we know that after the Rapture, great prosperity will continue until the beginning of the Great Tribulation.

We read in Revelation 18:11 that the nations of the world will not bemoan the horrible judgment they are experiencing, but rather the loss of merchandise: “And the merchants of the earth shall weep and mourn over her; for no man buyeth their merchandise any more.”

(See Progressive Globalism, Item #1092, $5.50.)