EU’s offer for Canada to become “the first associate member”

The European Commission’s deputy chief spokesperson Olof Gill told RTÉ’s Six One news: “All member states were consulted, all were aware.”

Certainly, the increasingly warm relationship between Brussels and Ottawa has been at the forefront of the EU’s response to a myriad of geopolitical crises. Both sides held their 20th summit meeting in Brussels last year, and a follow-up summit takes place in Montreal at the end of October.

On 9 September, European Commission officials and a team from the cabinet of European Council president Antonio Costa briefed 27 EU ambassadors on preparations for the Montreal summit.

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