Trudeau to host top EU officials in Newfoundland and green tech will likely be discussed

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is expected to welcome the top two leaders of the European Union to Newfoundland next month.

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen is to visit St. John's alongside European Council President Charles Michel in late November.

Trudeau's office noted that the meeting takes place at one of the ports closest to Europe at a time when both sides of the Atlantic are expanding trade in clean technology.

The EU and Ottawa hold leaders' summits every two years as part of an agreement signed in 2017 alongside a major trade deal.

The bloc of 27 countries has become an increasingly important partner to Canada in a world of growing political and economic instability.

The EU's ambassador to Canada, Melita Gabric, said last month that she's hoping the leaders will advance discussions about Canada possibly joining a major research-funding pact called Horizon Europe.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 30, 2023.