OMM Redaksiyası
French President Emmanuel Macron has visited the Saint-Pierre and Miquelon archipelago, located about 20-25 kilometers off Canada's coast. He will meet Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney there on Sept. 20.
The meeting comes at a sensitive time for relations among Europe, Canada and the United States. The visit is also being viewed as a message underscoring France's sovereignty over its only remaining territory in North America.
This is Macron's first visit to Saint-Pierre and Miquelon since taking office as president. The islands were last visited by a French president in 2014, when former President François Hollande traveled there.
The archipelago, located in the North Atlantic, has fewer than 6,000 residents. French officials say the territory gives France a strategic presence in the North Atlantic, close to Canada, the United States and the Arctic.
The diplomatic significance of the visit is also linked to a map shared by US President Donald Trump on social media several weeks ago. The map depicted Saint-Pierre and Miquelon, as well as some French Caribbean territories, with the US flag.
Macron and Carney are expected to discuss energy security, expanding economic ties, security in the Arctic and cooperation between Canada and the European Union. Their talks are expected to cover energy, critical minerals, defense, artificial intelligence and digital trade.
Carney supports closer relations between Canada and the European Union as part of efforts to reduce the country's dependence on the United States. The EU has also floated the idea that Canada could become its first “associate member,” although the initiative remains at an early stage.
After the visit, Macron will attend the United Nations General Assembly in New York.
