Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney and European Union leaders are set to conclude a two-day summit Friday as the EU's top official presses to make Canada the bloc's first "associate member" and both sides seek to reduce their dependence on the United States.

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and European Council President António Costa joined Carney in Montreal to pursue an unprecedented alliance that could bring Canada closer to the EU than any previous arrangement with a country outside the bloc. But some European governments have resisted the proposed associate membership designation.