Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney is likely to visit India in the first week of March later this year as Ottawa rushes to make amends and rebuild ties with New Delhi.
In an interview, Indian High Commissioner to Canada Dinesh Patnaik said that deals on uranium, energy, minerals and artificial intelligence are likely to be signed between India and Canada during Carney’s visit.
According to Patnaik, negotiations for a Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement with India are also expected to resume in March.
Canada’s Energy Minister Tim Hodgson is also scheduled to visit India this week. Hodgson has also reportedly confirmed Carney’s visit but didn’t reveal the dates.
“There are plans for the Prime Minister to visit at some point this year, it will depend on the progress we make,” Hodgson told the Globe and Mail during an interview.
Meanwhile, visits of Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal and Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman to Canada may also take place soon. National Security Advisor Ajit Doval is scheduled to visit Ottawa next month to discuss security matters.
These visits are aimed at laying the groundwork for Carney’s visit and his meeting with Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
The ties between India and Canada took a significant hit after former Canadian PM Justin Trudeau’s allegations that India was involved in the “extrajudicial” killing of Khalistani extremist Hardeep Singh Nijjar.
The allegations, made in the absence of any concrete evidence, triggered a massive diplomatic row between India and Canada, with New Delhi asking some of the Canadian diplomats to leave the country.
After Carney took over the reins following Trudeau’s resignation, the ties have since improved with both countries resuming high-level engagements.
Earlier on Monday, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar held a productive conversation with Canadian Foreign Minister Anita Anand, focusing on strengthening India-Canada bilateral ties.
The two leaders discussed deepening cooperation in various sectors, including economic partnership, artificial intelligence, and high-level exchanges.