Champagne promoting Canadian critical mineral and energy exports in Europe

The federal finance minister spoke in Europe about the benefits for both Canada and the European Union in solidifying trade deals and other agreements.

Canada’s finance minister says the country could be a “supplier of choice” for European markets looking to bolster energy security and defence capabilities.

Following a meeting in Denmark with European Union finance ministers, François-Philippe Champagne said Saturday that Canadian critical mineral and energy exports could help European economies become more resilient while diversifying Canada’s trade relationships.

“We are redesigning the world economic order at a speed and at a scale that I would say has not been seen in a generation,” he told reporters on a call from Copenhagen.

“They have taken notice that we’re putting our house in order so that we can be more competitive, that we can be a trusted supplier of natural resources, that we are willing to partner.”

Champagne said the need to strengthen defence and security ties was a major theme at this week’s meeting, and pointed to critical minerals, energy resources and shipbuilding expertise as key assets that Canada brings to the table.

The European outreach comes ahead of what are expected to be challenging negotiations to review the Canada-U.S.-Mexico Agreement next year. On Thursday, Canada and Mexico signed a pact to deepen economic and security ties between the two countries, which Prime Minister Mark Carney said would “complement” the trilateral trade deal.

“Obviously, the United States is a key trading partner,” Champagne said Saturday. “But at the same time, I think that it would be prudent for Canada to also diversify its market.”

Earlier this week, Champagne told reporters it was “sad… that our largest trading partner turned its back on Canada, which has led to us having to reassess how we’re going to build the economy of the future.”