Quebec separatists threaten to challenge EU-Canada summit deals

Quebec's separatist government has accused Ottawa of barring Premier Paul St-Pierre Plamondon from addressing Thursday's EU-Canada summit in Montreal and warned that any agreements touching provincial jurisdiction will require Quebec's approval.

Quebec Justice Minister Marie-Claude Sarrazin said Ottawa had refused St-Pierre Plamondon's request to speak at the summit, which opens Thursday and brings together Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, European Council President António Costa and Prime Minister Mark Carney. Ottawa also declined a September request from the previous Quebec government to host a sideline reception, Sarrazin said.

Carney pushed back, saying St-Pierre Plamondon had himself declined an invitation to the Thursday dinner. "It's his decision to leave an empty chair again," Carney told reporters in French.

Early drafts of the summit's joint declaration include a digital trade deal and a pact allowing the European Investment Bank to finance Canadian critical minerals projects — areas that partly fall under provincial jurisdiction, including natural resources.

Sarrazin invoked the 1965 Gérin-Lajoie doctrine, under which Quebec asserts the right to conduct its own foreign relations in constitutionally assigned provincial areas. She noted Quebec had attended more than 100 meetings during CETA negotiations. Sarrazin said that "Quebec is sovereign in its fields of jurisdiction internationally," and therefore would have the last word on such matters.

Bloc Québécois leader Yves-François Blanchet said his own request to attend had also been refused. The dispute was further complicated when US President Donald Trump congratulated St-Pierre Plamondon on his October 5 election victory, sharing an article describing the result as a blow to Carney.