Ursula von der Leyen’s diplomatic faux pas with Mark Carney

BRUSSELS — Ursula von der Leyen’s handling of Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney’s visit has turned into an awkward diplomatic mess, with one leading MEP branding her conduct “unacceptable.”

Carney will be watching as the Commission president speaks to MEPs on Wednesday, and will address the same crowd a day later. However, a scheduling clash meant von der Leyen was planning to return to Brussels after the State of the European Union — meaning she would miss Carney’s speech — before her team made a last-minute U-turn Monday night and announced she would stay in Strasbourg.

Canada’s Ambassador-designate to the EU Jonathan Wilkinson confirmed Ottawa had asked von der Leyen to be present for Carney’s speech.

“We said that obviously from our side, given that … he’s going to be there for her speech, it would be great if she could be there [for his],” Wilkinson told POLITICO, adding: “They found a way to make it work, which I think is good for everybody.”

The episode comes amid the most carefully choreographed week on the Commission president’s calendar — and as Brussels and Ottawa are trying to deepen ties.

Speculation has swirled that Canada is seeking “associate membership” in the EU — even though no such status exists. Carney has denied pursuing such a standing, while a Canadian official, granted anonymity to speak freely, said it had actually been a European suggestion.

Anatomy of a snub

The back-and-forth started with a simple scheduling problem.

Von der Leyen had been supposed to meet Carney in Strasbourg on Tuesday, according to an EU official.

That meeting was pushed to Wednesday, the official said. “We had thought we had more time on Tuesday. There was an aligning of schedules — so now we will spend an extra night here.”

Carney has positioned himself as the leader of a coalition of “middle power” nations in opposition to larger countries wielding hard power, including the United States. It was thus a coup for von der Leyen when the Canadian PM announced he would make the 6,000-kilometer trek to Strasbourg to watch her speech and address the European Parliament.

Canada, a resource-rich nation of 40 million and a $2.5 trillion economy that is part of the G7, is seen as a natural geopolitical partner for the EU as both sides seek to navigate an increasingly volatile world.

While von der Leyen doesn’t typically attend the speeches of other leaders in the European Parliament hemicycle, she has done so before, namely with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in 2024.

That precedent explains why MEPs and EU officials reacted with shock when von der Leyen said she would snub Carney’s speech for a press conference on child safety in Brussels.

The brush-off was “weird,” one EU official noted. Belgian MEP Kathleen Van Brempt said: “Really, von der Leyen? That’s more than bad manners. It’s unacceptable.”

Even European Parliament President Roberta Metsola weighed in.

“I mean, look, I spoke to her but it is not traditional that she will stay the day after,” Metsola said Tuesday. “I think there was a lot of questions why, and I think that’s not up to me to judge.”

Wilkinson, the Canadian ambassador, confirmed that Ottawa had made its preference clear.

“I know that they had some complexity in their schedule, and they were working that out,” he said.

Associate status?

The scheduling drama came after a bout of confusion over what the EU-Canada relationship is becoming.

Canada’s growing ties with the EU have drawn speculation as to what a closer relationship between Ottawa and the bloc could mean in practice, from greater participation in the bloc’s flagship educational program Erasmus to more far-reaching integration on trade and security.

The Wall Street Journal reported that Ottawa was discussing “associate membership,” potentially allowing visa-free travel and EU working rights for Canadians.

But Carney dismissed the report, saying he was instead seeking a “unique alliance” with the EU.

It was actually the European side that suggested the associate label, one of several ideas considered during months of talks on strengthening ties, a senior Canadian official told POLITICO.

Enlargement Commissioner Marta Kos, who has previously poured cold water on the idea of Canadian membership, was not involved in any discussions about Canadian partial membership, another European official confirmed.

The mixed messaging points to a broader problem: Brussels is trying to build a new kind of relationship with Canada before it has quite worked out what that relationship should look like — or how to explain it.

Gabriel Gavin contributed reporting from Brussels and Sue Allan from Ottawa.