Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney on Thursday welcomed a proposal for Canada to become the European Union’s first “associate member,” saying deeper ties with Europe could strengthen Canada’s economic resilience and reduce its vulnerability to external pressure.

Speaking to the European Parliament in Strasbourg, Carney embraced the proposal unveiled a day earlier by European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, while acknowledging that the meaning and structure of “associate membership” have yet to be defined.

The proposed status does not currently exist under EU treaties and would require further negotiations over how such a relationship would operate.

Carney outlined a vision for deeper Canada-EU integration in areas including trade, defense, critical minerals, artificial intelligence, energy, space, research and financial services.

He said closer cooperation would help both sides become less vulnerable to economic and geopolitical pressure while strengthening their ability to make independent decisions.

“I am not proposing a third bloc in order to become a great-power rival — only with better manners,” Carney told European lawmakers. “We do not seek power to dominate others.”

Instead, Carney said Canada wants to strengthen its resilience so that no country can control its markets, undermine its sovereignty or dictate its choices.

His remarks came after U.S. President Donald Trump suggested the proposed Canada-EU arrangement could amount to a “hostile act” and warned that Washington could impose heavy tariffs on Europe if he concluded the initiative was directed against the United States. Trump described the proposal as “laughable.”

European officials have said the initiative is intended to deepen cooperation with Canada rather than target another country. Von der Leyen has proposed an “Alliance for the Future” aimed at creating closer economic and strategic ties between the two sides.

Canada and the EU already have extensive economic relations through their Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement, or CETA, and have recently expanded cooperation in defense and other strategic sectors.

Carney’s endorsement of the associate membership proposal signals Ottawa’s push to diversify its international relationships while maintaining that the emerging Canada-Europe partnership is not intended to create a new power bloc competing with the United States, China or other major powers.