More from the article ...

... The status does not currently exist, but the EU could be open to creating special membership arrangements, the newspaper said, citing unnamed EU and Canadian officials. The European Commission did not respond to a request for comment.

The report comes ahead of a speech by Carney to the European Parliament in Strasbourg on Thursday, where he is expected to set out his vision for Canada-EU ties in a challenging geopolitical environment.

Ottawa is locked in a historic trade war with the United States, with steep tariffs in place and no signs of de-escalation.

The EU and Canada want to bolster trade ties of goods, services and workers, particularly in areas including energy, artificial intelligence, defence and critical minerals, according to the report.

The two are also said to be discussing major joint projects, including undersea cables, data centres, cloud infrastructure and satellite networks. Canada also wants to expand energy exports to Europe, the WSJ said.

Still, securing any form of "associate member" status could prove difficult. The EU has strict rules on membership and a lengthy process for making changes to its existing arrangements. ...