Foreign Affairs Minister Anita Anand spoke in Mumbai, India, Tuesday.Francis Mascarenhas/Reuters
Political leaders in Canada and India are hailing a “new roadmap” to reset relations between the two countries after Foreign Minister Anita Anand met with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and senior ministers in New Delhi.
A joint statement on Monday from Ms. Anand and her counterpart, Indian Foreign Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar, outlines a number of specific measures the two countries plan to take “to restore stability in the relationship.”
The road map follows a meeting Prime Minister Mark Carney had with Mr. Modi on the sidelines of the G7 summit in Kananaskis, Alta., in June. Plans include further high-level discussions on bilateral trade and investment, co-operation on climate action and trade in oil and gas, partnerships on artificial intelligence as well as “refreshed collaboration” in higher education.
Ms. Anand visited Mr. Modi and Mr. Jaishankar as part of a multiday stopover before she heads to China to meet with that country’s Foreign Minister. There she will aim to do further fence-mending and ease the economic pain from a trade spat that has targeted key sectors such as canola and electric vehicles.
Prime Minister Mark Carney and India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi shake hands during the G7 Leaders’ Summit in Kananaskis, Alta., June 17.Amber Bracken/Reuters
Relations between Canada and India reached a low point more than two years ago after Sikh separatist Hardeep Singh Nijjar was shot dead in Surrey, B.C., and then-prime-minister Justin Trudeau publicly alleged that India’s government was responsible. Indian leaders denied that accusation, and the resulting rupture sent dozens of Canadian and Indian diplomats home.
Monday’s 1,200-word joint statement gives a nod to Canada’s insistence that such encroachments on its sovereignty must not happen again, citing “mutual respect for shared democratic values, the rule of law, and a commitment to upholding the principles of sovereignty and territorial integrity.”
It also says Canada and India are keen to draw closer together to “mitigate vulnerabilities arising from shifting global alliances,” in an apparent reference to the pressure each country is facing from U.S. tariffs and President Donald Trump’s efforts to upend global trade.
Opinion: Canada and India must put economics at the heart of rapprochement
The governments intend to promote “two-way trade” in liquefied natural gas, revive the Canada–India CEO Forum to bring together business executives, and work on developing stable agricultural supply chains, among other initiatives outlined in the joint statement.
Peter Jones, a professor in the graduate school of public and international affairs at the University of Ottawa, called the statement “a significant step” that signals commitment to moving past the difficulties of recent years.
“This isn’t just, ‘Well, we’d like to get along better.’ This is a set of things they actually plan to do,” he said in an interview. “So I think it obviously shows that people have been talking about this and working on it behind the scenes for some time.”
In a social-media post, Ms. Anand said Canada is working with India to revive a relationship “grounded in our ongoing law enforcement dialogue and growing economic partnership opportunities including in the areas of energy, trade and AI.”
Mr. Jaishankar said in remarks from his meeting with Ms. Anand in New Delhi that India’s approach “is to move forward with a positive mindset,” and that “India-Canada bilateral relations have been steadily progressing in the last few months.”
In recent weeks, each country reinstated high commissioners to the other, and after their national-security advisers met in New Delhi, India committed to co-operate and share information with Canadian police investigations. In late September, Ms. Anand also spoke with Mr. Jaishankar at the United Nations General Assembly in New York.
A prominent advocate for a Sikh homeland in India, Inderjeet Singh Gosal, was arrested on firearm charges in Ontario in September. The arrest made headlines in India, while Ottawa denied any involvement.
India also stayed quiet when Canada listed the Bishnoi gang as a terrorist entity. Canadian police have linked the transnational criminal organization, which operates mostly out of India, to elements of the country’s intelligence services. Members of Canada’s Sikh community allege that the gang has targeted supporters of the separatist Khalistan movement.
How a gang run from an Indian jail became listed as a terrorist group in Canada
In Monday’s joint statement, the two foreign ministers focused on building “momentum” in their relationship, recognizing that “in the context of ongoing global economic uncertainty and rising geopolitical tensions, a strong and resilient Canada-India bilateral relationship is essential.”
Both Canada and India have fallen into Mr. Trump’s crosshairs as the United States pushes a more protectionist vision for trade. Canadian officials are in intensive negotiations in Washington, seeking relief from high tariffs for key sectors such as steel, aluminum, automobiles and forestry products. And the U.S. targeted India with a 50-per-cent tariff on goods as apparent punishment for New Delhi’s continued willingness to buy Russian oil and weapons, which help fund its expansionist war in Ukraine.
That economic pain appears to have acted as a catalyst to speed up the thaw in Canada-India relations, as countries around the world look to reduce their dependence on the U.S.
“Eventually Canada and India would have found a way to go forward. They weren’t going to be estranged forever,” Prof. Jones said. “But this probably hastened it, and it probably gave it a certain context and set of specificities that it might not otherwise have had.”