Across the North Atlantic : Europe and Canadian Foreign Policy in the Cold War

For much of the Cold War, Canada’s relationship with Europe played an integral yet often overlooked role in shaping the country’s place in the world. The end of that struggle and the rise of globalization saw Canadian policymakers shift their attention elsewhere – towards Canada–US relations and towards the Global South – at least until the events of the late 2010s. Across the North Atlantic refocuses attention back on Europe and its place in Canadian international relations.

The volume examines Canada’s foreign policy engagement with Europe through its relationships with major institutions – most notably the European Economic Community (now the European Union) and the North Atlantic Treaty Organization – as well as with individual states such as Germany, Italy, and the United Kingdom. Throughout the Cold War, Canadian policy sustained key post–Second World War priorities: support for Europe’s stability and security, the use of Europe as a strategic offset to American hegemony, and the pursuit of shared values rooted in a common past. Contributors show how political, economic, military, and diplomatic ties with Europe shaped Cold War strategy and Canada’s evolving global identity. Drawing on new research, chapters connect Cold War–era decisions to issues that continue to define Canada–Europe relations today, including security and defence, trade diversification, environmental diplomacy, human rights, and immigration and refugee policy.

Across the North Atlantic demonstrates how Canada navigated the tensions – and opportunities – of transatlantic engagement with Europe while operating in the shadow of the United States.