Is the EU getting a new member?

“This is not a partnership against anyone else, but one for our common strength,” von der Leyen said in her address to the European Parliament, which was also attended by Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney. Her proposal was met with applause from the MEPs and commissioners present in the chamber of the European Parliament in Strasbourg.

Von der Leyen welcomed the Canadian prime minister, who is due to address the European Parliament tomorrow, saying that his presence is “a symbol of the enduring friendship between our peoples.”

“Mark, Europe and Canada believe in democracy. That power does not belong to the strongest, the richest or the loudest, but to all of us. Democracies should have the freedom to choose whom they cooperate with. That is why we are voluntarily joining forces,” von der Leyen said.

She said that the EU’s prosperity and security, “in this age of profound change,” would not be built at home alone, citing as examples new trade agreements with Australia, India, the Mercosur bloc, Mexico and Indonesia.

“These partnerships are a strategic choice for Europe, but they also respond to the cracks in the rules-based international system,” von der Leyen said.

According to her, for some, the answer is to go it alone, but that is not an option for the EU.

She added that Europe would always lead the way in defending the rules-based system, but that it could no longer rely solely on that system as the only way to safeguard its interests, nor assume that the rules would protect it from the complex threats it faces.

Von der Leyen concluded that, in this new world, the EU must urgently reassess its partnerships and build global coalitions to strengthen its resilience and bolster democracy.