Latest news with #EuropeanCouncil
Winnipeg Free Press
3 hours ago
- Business
- Winnipeg Free Press
Canada-Europe security and defence pact to be signed Monday in Brussels
OTTAWA – A security and defence partnership pact Prime Minister Mark Carney will sign with European leaders in Brussels on Monday will be among the most wide-ranging agreements with a third country Europe has ever reached, a senior EU official said on Friday. Carney is flying to Europe Sunday for a Canada — EU Summit, planned for Monday evening with European Council President António Costa and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen. At the G7 summit in Alberta on Monday von der Leyen confirmed that the agreement will be signed on Monday in Brussels, calling Canada a 'key partner.' 'This is also a moment where we can strengthen Canada's role in Europe's rapidly evolving defence architecture,' said Von der Leyen on June 16. In a briefing to Canadian and European reporters on Friday, a senior European official said there will be two main outcomes from the summit — a joint statement that expresses views on global issues, such as conflicts in Ukraine and the Middle East, as well as the signing of the 'EU Canada Security and Defence Partnership Agreement.' 'This is an ambitious one,' the official said. 'And actually we've had this with a number of global partners, but the one with Canada would be one of the most far reaching of its kind that the EU has ever signed with a third country. It will open up new avenues for joint work on crisis management, military mobility, maritime security, cyber and cyber threats, and defence industrial co-operation.' Carney has been clear that he intends to expand Canada's ties with Europe as its relationship with the United States strains under the weight of tariffs and threats of annexation. Within two days of being sworn in as prime minister in March Carney flew to Europe, meeting with French President Emmanuel Macron in Paris and British Prime Minister Keir Starmer in London. It was during those meetings that he seriously began talking about signing on to Europe's new defence procurement plan known as ReArm Europe. In the throne speech on May 27, Carney's government pledged to join that program, and he told the CBC in an interview that same day he expected Canada to do that by July 1. On June 9, Carney announced a massive investment in Canada's defence budget to push Canada above the two per cent of GDP NATO target this country has promised — and failed — to meet for more than a decade. Joining ReArm Europe is part of that plan, with Carney repeatedly saying Canada can no longer put all its defence spending into the U.S. 'We are in close discussions with our European partners to join ReArm Europe,' he said on June 9. 'That will be an element of diversification. That's just smart. It's better to be diversified. It's better to have options. It's better to have different supply chains and broader partners.' The agenda for the summit posted by the European Council says the security and defence procurement agreement will allow Canada to join a European loan program for joint defence projects. That 150-billion euro program — called Security Action for Europe, or SAFE — is part of the ReArm Europe initiative. The EU official said on Friday that once the procurement agreement is in place, Canada will have to negotiate a bilateral agreement with the European Commission to begin discussions with member states about procurement opportunities. Leaders at the EU-Canada summit are also expected to discuss global trade and the wars raging in Ukraine and the Middle East. They will also commit to fully ratifying the Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement, the Canada-Europe free trade agreement known as CETA. Fen Hampson, a professor of international affairs at Carleton University, said Carney also should put the 'pedal to the metal' on ratifying CETA. The deal entered into force provisionally in 2017, but several EU member states still need to ratify CETA at the national level. 'The real challenge there is to get Canadian businesses and also European businesses to take it up … and to start doing more business across the Atlantic, but that also requires political leadership,' Hampson said. 'It hasn't been fully ratified but that's something (Carney) can perhaps impress upon the Europeans.' After Brussels, Carney will travel to The Hague for the NATO leaders' summit, where discussions are expected to push forward on increasing the NATO members' defence spending target as high as five per cent of GDP, from the current two per cent. — With files from Kyle Duggan, Dylan Robertson and The Associated Press This report by The Canadian Press was first published June 20, 2025.
The Independent
7 hours ago
- Politics
- The Independent
Post-Brexit youth visa scheme with EU given green light in major step towards closer ties with the bloc
The European Union has given the green light to post- Brexit youth visas with the UK, after member states approved talks on how they would work in practice. Campaigners welcomed what they hailed as a 'massive step forward for young people in the UK.' The European Council, which comprises the leaders of EU member countries, has backed opening up detailed discussions with the UK to determine how many visas would be issued and what conditions they would have. Britons lost the right to live and work in the UK, so-called 'freedom of movement', and vice versa, after the UK left the bloc. But there have long been calls for a scheme for 18-30 years olds that would allow Brits to work on the continent, and young people from EU countries to come here, for a short period of a few years. Britain already has similar agreements on youth mobility with 13 separate countries, including Australia, New Zealand, South Korea, Iceland, Uruguay, Hong Kong and Taiwan. Most of these are open to 18 to 30-year-olds or 18 to 35-year-olds, depending on where they are from, and allow them to live and work in the UK for up to two years. But idea of a youth visa deal with the EU has proven controversial, with Labour ministers forced to defend it and deny it's a return to pre-Brexit style freedom of movement. Earlier this year Downing Street made clear that anyone coming to the UK as part of a youth mobility scheme with the EU will not be able to access benefits, nor bring family members with them. It is understood that they would also have to pay an immigration health surcharge to use the NHS. The council has now adopted plans to open official negotiations with the UK on such a scheme. Alfred Quantrill, from the Young European Movement UK, said: "The EU deciding to formally start talks on a Youth Experience Scheme is a massive step forward for young people in the UK. "Young Brits deserve the same chances enjoyed by most of their peers across the continent. 'Whether you call it a Youth Experience Scheme or Mobility Scheme, it amounts to the same - more opportunities for a whole generation of young Brits who have seen their chances of working and studying abroad shrinking for a decade. "That means rejoining schemes like Erasmus+, but also opening up broader access to apprenticeships, internships, and leisure. While our parents could freely work, study and travel across borders, this generation is trapped by paperwork and high costs. The Youth Experience Scheme is Starmer's chance to fix this failure." The moves comes just days after a poll showed that nearly nine years on from the narrow Brexit referendum result, which led to the UK leaving the union, most Britons want to see the UK return to the EU. 'Bregretful' about the outcome of the vote, which ended David Cameron 's term as prime minister.
Arab News
a day ago
- Politics
- Arab News
Denmark to push for Ukraine's EU membership during presidency
COPENHAGEN: Denmark will continue preparing Ukraine for EU membership in the face of Hungary blocking negotiations, when the Nordic country takes over the presidency of the European Council from July 1, its European affairs minister said on Thursday. 'Unfortunately, Hungary is blocking and we are trying to put as much pressure there as we can and also do everything we can to make Ukraine continue with the necessary reform work,' European affairs minister Marie Bjerre told a press conference in Copenhagen. Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban has strongly opposed providing NATO military and EU aid to Ukraine, saying the country's EU membership would destroy Hungarian farmers and the wider economy. Ukraine had already initiated the necessary reforms and is ready to speed up the negotiations. 'When we get to the point where we can actually open the specific negotiation chapters, we can be ready to close them very quickly,' Bjerre said. Denmark will also seek to reach agreement among EU nations on the bloc's planned 2040 climate goals. The European Commission plans to propose in July a legally binding target to cut EU countries' emissions by 90 percent by 2040, from 1990 levels. Faced with pushback from governments, however, Brussels is assessing options including setting a lower target for domestic industries, and using international carbon credits to make up the gap to 90 percent.
Yahoo
a day ago
- Politics
- Yahoo
Denmark to push for Ukraine's EU membership during presidency
COPENHAGEN (Reuters) -Denmark will continue preparing Ukraine for EU membership in the face of Hungary blocking negotiations, when the Nordic country takes over the presidency of the European Council from July 1, its European affairs minister said on Thursday. "Unfortunately, Hungary is blocking and we are trying to put as much pressure there as we can and also do everything we can to make Ukraine continue with the necessary reform work," European affairs minister Marie Bjerre told a press conference in Copenhagen. Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban has strongly opposed providing NATO military and EU aid to Ukraine, saying the country's EU membership would destroy Hungarian farmers and the wider economy. Ukraine had already initiated the necessary reforms and is ready to speed up the negotiations. "When we get to the point where we can actually open the specific negotiation chapters, we can be ready to close them very quickly," Bjerre said. Denmark will also seek to reach agreement among EU nations on the bloc's planned 2040 climate goals. The European Commission plans to propose in July a legally binding target to cut EU countries' emissions by 90% by 2040, from 1990 levels. Faced with pushback from governments, however, Brussels is assessing options including setting a lower target for domestic industries, and using international carbon credits to make up the gap to 90%.
Business Times
a day ago
- Business
- Business Times
EU countries back winemaker support plan, with 'low-alcohol' tweak
[BRUSSELS] EU countries Thursday (Jun 19) backed plans by Brussels to give winemakers a leg up – with some tweaks, including reducing labelling requirements for exports and renaming 'alcohol-light' products 'low-alcohol'. The European Commission in March unveiled a raft of measures to help Europe's wine sector face challenges from falling demand, to climate change and global trade tensions. Europe accounts for 60 per cent of the world's production but young people in the bloc are drinking less as they seek healthier lifestyles. To offset this, the commission proposed creating common definitions, including an 'alcohol-light' label for wines with an alcohol content above 0.5 per cent but significantly lower than conventional wines. The wording was deemed potentially misleading by the European Council representing the European Union's 27 governments. It approved the package but changed the label to 'low-alcohol'. It also suggested that, to reduce producers' administrative burden, exported wines be exempted from a requirement to list ingredients and nutrition data on the label as per internal EU rules. BT in your inbox Start and end each day with the latest news stories and analyses delivered straight to your inbox. Sign Up Sign Up Member states also took issue with the commission limiting the use of rose in the production of flavoured wines only to Gluhwein or mulled wine – a German-loved warm beverage often guzzled at Christmas markets. Rose will now be allowed also for the making of Gluhwein's Nordic cousin, Vinglogg, as well as Pelin, a Romanian speciality, and other regional products. Using the term 'rose' on the label will, however, remain strictly forbidden. The package greenlighted by the council also aimed to encourage more tourists to visit Europe's picturesque vineyards. It extended EU financial support for advertising campaigns outside the bloc and upped aid for climate change adaptation. The text will need to be negotiated with and approved by the European Parliament before it can come into force. AFP
