Canadians have said they want to join the European Union in the wake of Donald Trump’s bid to make the country the ’51st US state’.
An EU spokesperson said the bloc was flattered by the interest, but pointed out being a European country was a starting point for eligibility.
The idea that Ottawa should throw in its lot with Brussels has been half-seriously floated by some commentators as US President Donald Trump’s tariffs and threats push the two sides closer.
When Pollster Abacus Data put the question to Canadians at the end of February, 44 percent said yes, Canada should join the 27-nation club.
More then 46 per cent of those surveyed voiced general support for joining the bloc, Politico reports.
Only 34 percent of the 1,500 people polled opposed the idea, with the remainder unsure, according to the survey published this week.
‘It’s not a surprise, because the EU and Canada are like-minded partners which share many, many, many values and also strong historical connections,’ European Commission spokeswoman Paula Pinho said of the poll at a news conference Wednesday.
Brussels was ‘honoured with the results’, which pointed to the bloc’s ‘attractiveness’, she added.
Canadians have said they want to join the European Union in the wake of Donald Trump’s (pictured) bid to make the country the ’51st US state’
Justin Trudeau’s replacement as Canada’s new Prime Minister, Mark Carney (pictured), declared that the country will ‘never be part of America’
Asked whether Canada was eligible to join, while stopping short of expressly saying ‘no’, she referred to the admission criteria set out in EU treaties, which seem to rule out Ottawa.
‘For a country to become a member of the EU, there are criteria foreseen in the treaties,’ she said.
Article 49 of the Treaty on European Union says that ‘any European state’ that respects values including freedom, democracy and equality can apply for membership.
What constitutes a ‘European’ country is not defined but arguing Canada is one could prove to be a bit of a stretch.
Canadians speak both of the EU’s main working languages – English and French. They are neighbours to Greenland, an autonomous Danish territory that Trump has, like Canada, threatened to annex.
But an ocean still separates them from the old continent.
In 1987, Morocco was denied a membership bid on the grounds it was not a European state.
Albania, Bosnia, Georgia, Moldova, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Serbia, Turkey and Ukraine have had their applications accepted for consideration, on the other hand.
Donald Trump has suggested that the United States could annex Canada as a 51st state. Trump is pictured above with former Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau
Canada already has a free-trade agreement with the EU, which is its second-largest export destination after the United States.
Trump has repeatedly called for Canada to become the 51st US state, while triggering a trade war by slapping tariffs on some goods coming across the northern border.
Trump’s Secretary of State Marco Rubio was forced to say on Wednesday that a takeover would not be on the table of a G7 meeting in Quebec this week.
But the poll showing that many Canadians are in favour of joining the European Union underscores the increasingly positive views many in Canada hold about the EU.
About 68 per cent of those surveyed said they had a positive view of the bloc, which is double the amount of people – 34 per cent – who said they had a positive view of the US.
Speaking during his acceptance speech, the former Bank of England governor Mark Carney chose to lean strongly into resisting US President Donald Trump’s policies.
The 59-year-old defiantly stated: ‘Donald Trump thinks he can weaken us with his plan to divide and conquer.
‘Pierre Poilievre will leave us divided and ready to be conquered because a person who worships at the altar of Donald Trump will kneel before him, not stand up to him’.
This comes after Canadians were left outraged by a telling clue that the United States is edging closer toward making its northern neighbour the 51st state.
Canadians noticed some provincial parks have recently been mislabeled as ‘state’ parks on Google maps
Amid repeated warnings from President Trump that he’s interested in acquiring Canada as a state of America, Canadians noticed some provincial parks have recently been mislabeled as ‘state’ parks on Google maps.
Speaking to CTV news, resident Rachel Deren said: ‘I would like to draw attention to this disgusting display of American oppression of Canadian culture and autonomy.
‘This alarming revelation has stirred many who have noticed, as it is an attack on our Canadian identity.’
Mount Robson Park, Whaleboat Island Marine Provincial Park and Pinecone Burke Provincial Park are among a handful of parks in Canada that go by ‘state park’ on Google maps.
This is despite being almost exclusively referred to as ‘provincial’ parks within Canada, while ‘state’ parks are considered an Americanized term.
‘We are proud to be Canadian and will remain so despite attempts like this from our ever increasingly hostile neighbours to the south,’ Deren said.
