Brussels will host a summit among the highest representatives of the European Union and Canada Prime Minister and Minister of International Trade on 5 May 2010.

The 2010 Summit between the European Union and Canada will be held in Brussels on Wednesday 5 May 2010 at the Justus Lipsius, the building of the European Council. The European Union will be represented by Herman Van Rompuy, President of the European Council, and José Manuel Barroso. President of the European Commission. High Representative/Vice-President, Catherine Ashton and Commissioner De Gucht will also participate.

For its part, Canada will be represented by Prime Minister Stephen Harper and the Minister of International Trade, Peter Van Loan.

The summit will focus on the discussion of the future framework for bilateral political and economic relations. Partners will also discuss global issues, such as the forthcoming G 8 and G 20 meetings, climate change and non-proliferation issues. Furthermore, both sides will examine their cooperation on regional crisis management.

Canada is one of the European Union’s oldest and closest partners. What started out in the 1950s as a purely economic relationship has evolved over the years to become a close strategic partnership. For example, the Commission has recently funded with almost 2 M€ Transatlantic Exchange Partnerships and Transatlantic Degree Partnerships within the EU-Canada  programme for co-operation in higher education, training and youth.

The EU and Canada work closely together on global challenges such as the environment, climate change, energy security and regional stability throughout the world. This co-operation stretches from research into alternative energy sources to providing police training in Afghanistan.

As for trade, Canada is currently the EU's 11th most important trading partner, accounting for 1.7% of the EU's total external trade. The EU is Canada's second most important trading partner, after the U.S., with a 10% share of its total external trade.