I Will Put Very Serious Tariffs: Trump Threatens To Cut EU Trade Over Canada Association Plan

US President Donald Trump on Wednesday threatened to impose very heavy tariffs or even halt trade with the European Union if Brussels pursues a plan to make Canada its first ever associate member.

EU chief Ursula von der Leyen proposed closer ties with Canada a day before Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney was due to address the European Parliament. The move comes as Canada and the EU seek to reduce their dependence on an increasingly aggressive United States under Trump and respond to competition from China.

“I think it’s laughable,” Trump told reporters when asked about the proposal. “If they do that, if I think it’s at all a hostile act, I will put very serious tariffs or stop trading with Europe, on many things.”

“If it’s a good intention, that’s fine. If it’s a bad intention, we’ll put very heavy tariffs on Europe, which is a possibility,” he added.

Von der Leyen told the European Parliament in Strasbourg that Brussels and Ottawa should deepen cooperation as democracies face a “fracture in the international rules based system”. She proposed working with Carney on technology, defence and energy, saying she wanted Canada to become the EU’s first associate member.

Carney became the first non European head of government to attend the annual State of the European Union speech. His visit is also expected to build momentum ahead of an EU Canada summit in Montreal next month.

Von der Leyen said the relationship should move beyond trade towards an “alliance for the future”, covering intelligent manufacturing, technology, defence industries and the Arctic. She also cited critical minerals, batteries, AI, cyber security and economic security as areas for closer cooperation.

Carney’s office said Canada is forging stronger ties with “trusted partners” in a more dangerous and divided world.

However, the proposed status is legally uncertain. EU treaties do not currently provide for associate membership. The idea was first floated by German Chancellor Friedrich Merz this year for Ukraine, although Kyiv preferred full membership.

The proposed model would allow participation in EU summits, representation in the European Commission and access to parts of the EU budget, but without full voting rights.

Tobias Cremer, the German lawmaker backing stronger EU Canada cooperation, said: “We don’t really know yet what it means.” EU member states would have to approve any new partnership with a third country.

Brussels and Ottawa already have strong economic ties. Their CETA free trade agreement has been credited with helping increase trade in goods and services by more than 80 percent since 2016. Canada also became the first non EU country this year to join a flagship EU defence loan programme.

After Strasbourg, Carney travelled to Britain for his first meeting with new UK Prime Minister Andy Burnham. They attended an Everton Wolverhampton football match before Carney returned to Strasbourg for his Thursday speech.