European Parliament to establish an antenna office in Ottawa

The European Parliament will open an antenna office in Ottawa to further strengthen parliamentary relations between the European Union and Canada.

The Bureau decision comes ahead of Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney’s formal address to the European Parliament on Thursday 17 September and follows discussions with the Speaker of the Canadian Parliament since President Metsola’s participation in the G7 Speakers’ meeting in Canada last year. It underlines the European Parliament’s commitment to deepening political dialogue and cooperation with Canada.

The Ottawa antenna will strengthen the European Parliament’s presence in and engagement with Canada, raise awareness of its work among Canadian audiences and facilitate parliamentary exchanges. With a regional remit extending to the Arctic, it will also provide an important platform for parliamentary engagement on issues of growing strategic importance to both the EU and Canada.

The opening of the Ottawa antenna reflects the close and longstanding partnership between the European Union and Canada and the shared commitment to reinforcing parliamentary diplomacy as an essential pillar of transatlantic cooperation.

President Metsola said: “At a time when the world is becoming more unpredictable, like-minded partners need to work even more closely together. Europe and Canada share values, interests and a commitment to the same rules-based international order. Our new presence in Ottawa will turn that partnership into even closer parliamentary cooperation – from transatlantic security and trade to the Arctic and all the challenges we face together.”

Background

Currently, Parliament has nine offices outside of the European Union: in Addis Ababa for relations with the African Union, in Chișinău for relations with the entire Eastern Partnership region, in Jakarta for relations with the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, in London for relations with the United Kingdom, in New York for relations with the United Nations, in Panama for relations with Latin America and the Caribbean, in Tirana for the Western Balkans, in Washington for relations with the United States, and in Kyiv, where Parliament opened its official representation, reinforcing its presence and support on the ground.