European Parliament approves an office in Ottawa for relations with Canada, with a mandate covering the Arctic

The new office will support parliamentary exchanges and inform the Canadian public about the activities of the European Parliament. The decision precedes Mark Carney’s speech in Strasbourg, but the office’s opening date, staff and costs were not specified in the announcement.

The European Parliament approved the establishment of an office in Ottawa, which will support relations with Canada and have regional responsibilities extending to the Arctic. The new structure will facilitate exchanges between parliamentarians and raise awareness of the European Parliament’s activities among the Canadian public, according to the mandate announced by Parliament.

In brief

1. The Ottawa office will facilitate exchanges between parliamentarians and raise awareness of the European Parliament’s activities in Canada. Its regional mandate extends to the Arctic, which the EU and Canada consider an area of cooperation for security, stability and sustainable development.

2. The new local presence will complement the relations developed through the European Parliament’s delegation for Canada, which has organised annual interparliamentary meetings for more than 40 years. These meetings take place alternately in Europe and Canada and usually conclude with a joint statement.

3. The establishment was approved by the Bureau of the European Parliament, but the announcement does not specify the opening date, number of employees or costs. Mark Carney is due to address Members of the European Parliament in Strasbourg on 17 September, during a visit that includes discussions on trade, investment and security.

The decision belongs to the Bureau of the European Parliament, the body responsible for administrative, staffing and organisational matters. The date of the actual opening, the number of employees and the costs of the new structure are not specified in the announcement.

The European Parliament’s delegation for relations with Canada has organised annual interparliamentary meetings for more than 40 years, held alternately in Brussels, Ottawa and other Canadian locations. Its partner is the Canada–Europe Parliamentary Association, and participants usually publish a joint statement. The Ottawa office will add a local presence to these periodic exchanges.

European Parliament President Roberta Metsola presented the new office as a tool for bringing the two parliaments closer together, in a written statement. “Our new presence in Ottawa will turn this partnership into even closer parliamentary cooperation – from transatlantic security and trade to the Arctic and all the challenges we face together.”

The inclusion of the Arctic extends the office’s mandate beyond the bilateral relationship. At the EU–Canada summit in June 2025, the two sides had already identified the region as an area of cooperation for peace, security, stability and sustainable development, with full respect for the rights of Indigenous peoples.

The security agenda also has a separate framework, the EU–Canada Security and Defence Partnership, signed in June 2025. It provides for cooperation in areas such as support for Ukraine, maritime security, hybrid threats and cybersecurity. The partnership is a non-binding political instrument intended to organise dialogue and cooperation on security and defence.

Ottawa will expand Parliament’s network of representation outside the Union. Parliament lists nine existing external offices, including Washington, for relations with the United States, and New York, for relations with the United Nations. Some already have a regional area of activity, such as the one in Chișinău, for the Eastern Partnership, and the one in Tirana, for the Western Balkans.

The decision precedes the speech that Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney is due to deliver to the European Parliament in Strasbourg on 17 September. The Canadian government announced that the visit will also include meetings with Members of the European Parliament to deepen relations in trade, investment and security. Canada will host the next bilateral summit with the EU on 29–30 October 2026.

https://2eu.brussels/ro/news/parlamentul-european-aproba-un-birou-la-ottawa-pentru-relatiile-cu-canada-cu-un-mandat-care-include-arctica