PRESS REVIEW – Thursday, September 17: Will Canada become an associate member of the EU? Commissioner Ursula von der Leyen floated the idea in a speech but did not give any details about what it would entail. The press is reacting with scepticism. Also, Le Monde profiles some of the 8,000 people who died during France's summer heatwave. Scientists observe a humpback whale mourning her dead calf for the first time. And Singapore wants to pay citizens to stop scrolling and start reading.
If it goes ahead, Canada could be the first associate member of the European Union. According to Euroactiv, the European media outlet, Ursula von der Leyen put forward the proposal in her State of the Union speech yesterday, specifying that the alliance is not against anyone else but for both parties’ common strengths. The outlet also reminds us that von der Leyen made a similar bid for Ukraine earlier this year, which received a lukewarm response from EU member states. French communist paper l’Humanité, responded wryly: "Ursula von der Leyen doesn’t have oil but she does have ideas."
