Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who arrived at the G-7 summit on the invitation of Canada, met Canadian PM Mark Carney.
PM Modi, held a bilateral meeting with Mark Carney, on the sidelines of the G7 Summit in Kananaskis, Alberta.
Giving information about this meeting, PM Modi posted on Instagram, "Had a wonderful meeting with Prime Minister Mark Carney. Congratulated him and the Canadian government for successfully hosting the G-7 summit. India and Canada are linked by a strong belief in democracy, freedom and the rule of law."
"Prime Minister Carney and I are ready to work together to accelerate India-Canada friendship."
In a statement issued by the Canadian PM, it has been told that during this meeting, both the leaders have agreed to nominate new High Commissioners.
This was the first in-person interaction between the two leaders since Prime Minister Carney assumed office following Canada’s recent general elections. An official release said the meeting provided an opportunity for both sides to hold frank and forward-looking discussions on the state of India-Canada relations and the way ahead.
According to the release, leaders reaffirmed the importance of India-Canada ties, based on shared democratic values, respect for the rule of law. and commitment to upholding the principles of sovereignty and territorial integrity. In this regard, both sides agreed to take calibrated and constructive steps to restore stability in the relationship, beginning with the early return of High Commissioners to each other’s capitals.
The leaders underlined the importance of restarting senior ministerial as well as working-level engagements across various domains to rebuild trust and bring momentum to the relationship.
PM Modi discussed with Carney about the opportunities for future collaboration in areas such as clean energy, digital transformation, artificial intelligence, LNG, food security, critical minerals, higher education, mobility, and supply chain resilience. They reaffirmed their shared interest in promoting a free and open Indo-Pacific.
PM Modi and Carney also discussed the importance of restarting the stalled negotiations on the Early Progress Trade Agreement (EPTA), with a view to paving the way for a Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA). They agreed to task their respective officials to engage further in this regard.
Both leaders acknowledged the important progress made at the G7 Summit and the shared willingness to work constructively together on global priorities such as climate action, inclusive growth, and sustainable development.
Modi and Carney underlined the deep people-to-people connections between the two countries and agreed to leverage this living bridge to the benefit of both countries. They agreed to stay in touch and looked forward to meeting each other again at the earliest opportunity.
Prakash Kumar Pandey