Prime Minister Mark Carney takes part in a bilateral meeting with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi during the G20 Summit in Johannesburg, South Africa, on Sunday.Sean Kilpatrick/The Canadian Press
Prime Minister Mark Carney and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi are reviving attempts at a comprehensive trade deal, which both countries started negotiating in 2010.
Foreign Affairs Minister Anita Anand told The Canadian Press at the G20 summit in Johannesburg that both countries want a deal that would include most industrial sectors and services.
Canada and India launched talks 15 years ago for such a deal, but downgraded to a sectoral deal that would only touch on specific industries, up until fall 2023.
Ottawa suspended trade talks after going public with allegations from the RCMP that the Indian government was behind an assassination near Vancouver of Sikh activist Hardeep Singh Nijjar, followed by coercion and extortion.
Mr. Carney insists that there must be a security dialogue to rebuild trust with New Delhi, whom a federal inquiry branded as one of the most active perpetrators of foreign interference in Canada.
Ms. Anand says both countries expect to be able to double two-way trade by 2030, to $50-billion U.S.
Minister of Foreign Affairs Anita Anand says both countries want a deal that would include most industrial sectors and services.Sean Kilpatrick/The Canadian Press
Also at the summit, Mr. Carney said he is in no hurry to resume trade talks with U.S. President Donald Trump but will speak again with the president “when it’s appropriate,” he said Sunday.
Mr. Carney said he expects to speak with Trump sometime in the next two weeks but otherwise stands ready for when the Americans next knock on Canada’s door to return to the table.
“I look forward to speaking with the president soon, but I don’t have a burning issue to speak with the president about right now,” Mr. Carney said.
“When America wants to come back and have conversations on the trade side, we will have those discussions.”