THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT will open an ‘antennae’ office in Ottawa, Canada’s capital, as the EU strengthens ties with Canadian prime minister Mark Carney’s government.

European Parliament president Roberto Metsola said that with the world “becoming more unpredictable”, it was important for “like-minded partners” to work even more closely together on issues including transatlantic security and trade.

“Europe and Canada share values, interests and a commitment to the same rules-based international order,” Metsola said.

Carney is visiting Europe this week to further his own bid to find allies amid deteriorating relations with Donald Trump’s White House.

On Wednesday, Carney will be in attendance for European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen Canada’s State of the Union address to MEPs at the European Parliament in Strasbourg, France, before the Canadian PM takes his turn MEPs on Thursday.

Carney will also make a stop in Liverpool, where he will hold his first meeting with Britain’s new prime minister, Andy Burnham.

Canada has been hit hard by Trump’s trade war given its close economic integration with its southern neighbour, and is urgently seeking new economic partners.

Carney has already brought Canada closer to the bloc.

Canada became the first non-EU country to join its defence procurement program, and the prime minister was involved in Canada joining the pop culture extravaganza Eurovision.

Next month, Carney is hosting an EU-Canada summit in Montreal, where he said discussions will begin on building “a much stronger and deeper economic and security partnership.”

Carney cut off trade talks last month, saying the US offer was unacceptable, triggering angry responses from Trump, including punishing new tariffs and prompting Canadian retaliation.

Since the talks broke down last month, Trump has resumed taunting Canada and mocking its leadership, posting a generated image on social media of him towering over Carney and calling him “governor,” with both dressed in hockey gear.

New EU office in Canada

In a statement on Monday evening from the Bureau of the European Parliament, which oversees the management of the parliament, it said the Ottawa move underlines its commitment to “deepening political dialogue and cooperation” with Canada.

It hopes it will also boost its presence in Canada, including to “raise awareness of its work among Canadian audiences”.

Metsola said that the new presence in Ottawa will turn the EU-Canada partnership into “even closer parliamentary cooperation – from transatlantic security and trade to the Arctic and all the challenges we face together.”

Currently, the parliament has nine offices outside the EU: in Ethiopia for relations with the African Union, in Moldova for relations with Eastern European states, in Indonesia for relations with the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, in London for relations with the UK, and in New York for relations with the United Nations.

There are also offices in Panama for relations with Latin America and the Caribbean, in Albania for the Western Balkans and in Washington for EU-US relations.

It opened a permanent office in Ukraine’s capital Kyiv last year.