Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney’s call with German Chancellor Friedrich Merz on Monday came as he confirmed Canada will launch what he called intense discussions with the European Union this fall, the clearest sign yet of a diversification push that has accelerated since trade talks with Washington collapsed.

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Carney and Merz discussed negotiations toward a Canada-Germany Strategic Partnership Agreement, launched last month, along with more than six critical minerals partnerships the two countries have signed over the past year. Canada and Germany also launched a Sovereign Technology Alliance in February aimed at reducing both countries’ dependence on outside suppliers for AI compute infrastructure, followed by declarations covering battery manufacturing, semiconductors and auto supply chains.

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Carney first began building toward the EU relationship in June 2025, unveiling a new strategic partnership in Brussels alongside European Council President António Costa and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen. That meeting also secured Canada a role in the EU’s Security Action for Europe program, part of the bloc’s ReArm Europe push, and led to a separate Security and Defence Partnership.

Germany’s relationship with Canada has run ahead of that timeline, giving Ottawa a working model for what deeper EU ties could look like.

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