PARIS (AP) – French President Emmanuel Macron and Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney are set to meet Sunday to deepen economic and security ties on the remote North Atlantic archipelago of Saint-Pierre-et-Miquelon.
The meeting comes days after Carney embraced the prospect of Canada becoming the European Union´s first associate member, saying closer ties with the continent would ensure no country could control Canada’s markets or undermine its sovereignty.
U.S. President Donald Trump’s tariffs, demands for economic concessions and repeated talk of making Canada the 51st state have pushed Ottawa to reduce its dependence on its neighbor and pursue deeper economic, security and political relationships with Europe.
“This is an important moment,” Macron said upon arriving Saturday in the French territory off the coast of Newfoundland, Canada. Saint-Pierre-et-Miquelon is home to about 5,800 people.
Talks “will allow us … to strengthen our bilateral economic ties and defense relationship,” Macron said.
Macron also said Sunday’s talks are part of broader efforts to help France secure oil and gas supplies as the war with Iran disrupts global energy markets and raises fears of higher prices for fuel and other essentials.
“Canada is a country with significant resources of critical minerals and rare earths. It is also a major oil and natural gas producer,” Macron noted. “What we want to do is conclude agreements to secure more liquefied natural gas that can be shipped to Europe´s Atlantic coast.”
The leaders will discuss deepening the Canada-France partnership in strategic sectors, including aerospace, energy, critical minerals and advanced technologies such as quantum computing, satellites and supercomputing, Carney´s office said in a statement.
Sunday’s meeting also follows Trump’s announcement of a deal on Greenland that would expand the U.S. military presence there while keeping the island under Danish control. The agreement followed months of threats by Trump to seize the semiautonomous territory of a NATO ally.
Macron welcomed the agreement Saturday. “Danish sovereignty is being respected, international law is being respected,” he said. “Anything that helps ease tensions is a good thing.”