Canada, India to launch trade talks as ties thaw

TORONTO: Canada and India have agreed to launch talks on a new free trade agreement, Prime Minister Mark Carney said, the latest sign of thawing relations between the countries after a bitter fallout.

Carney’s office announced the talks after meeting Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday on the sidelines of the G20 summit in South Africa.

Relations had deteriorated following Canadian accusations that New Delhi was involved in the 2023 assassination of a Canadian Sikh leader – claims which India denied.

The diplomatic rift severely disrupted consular and trade services between the nations, which exchanged about $9 billion (CAN$12.3) in goods and services in 2023.

Canadian FM in India to rebuild relations

Since replacing Justin Trudeau in March, Carney has said Canada needs to expand its trading relations with partners overseas to reduce reliance on the United States, which has imposed punishing tariffs on key Canadian sectors.

Carney said in a statement that he and Modi agreed to launch talks on an “ambitious” trade deal that aims to “double two-way trade to CAN$70 billion by 2030.”

The Canadian leader also said he had accepted Modi’s invitation to visit India early next year.

Canada is home to the largest Sikh community outside India. That community includes activists for “Khalistan,” a fringe separatist movement seeking an independent state for the religious minority.

Ottawa accused India of orchestrating the 2023 killing in Vancouver of 45-year-old naturalised Canadian citizen Hardeep Singh Nijjar, a prominent Khalistan campaigner, and targeting other Sikh activists connected to the movement.

The Khalistan campaign dates to India’s 1947 independence and has been blamed for the assassination of a prime minister and the bombing of a passenger jet.

It has been a bitter issue between India and several Western nations with large Sikh populations.