Both committed towards realising potential of India-Canada relationship: Canadian PM Carney on meet with PM Modi

Kananaskis [Canada], June 18 (ANI): Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney held a press conference as the G7 Summit came to its conclusion, where he answered several pressing questions, including those on his meeting with Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

Answering a question on the India-Canada ties, PM Carney said, “In terms of the bilateral relationship, I think the meeting today was important. I would describe it as foundational, as a necessary first step, an exchange of views, a frank, open exchange of views around law enforcement, transnational repression as two examples, an agreement to provide the necessary foundations to begin to rebuild a relationship based on mutual respect, sovereignty, trust."

In his remarks, he noted that the two countries would work on appointing their High Commissioners again. Carney told the media, “We will move to appoint high commissioners again, and let me just finish by putting that in context, which is that there are very deep ties of people and businesses between Canada and India. It’s well known, it’s part of your point about where the relationship could go. And they are not served at present by consular services in effect– certainly by high commissioners, and it’s necessary to have that level of service as a basis on which to build out again in the context of respect for sovereignty and to begin to realise the potential of the relationship, and we will. We’re both committed to working towards that, but there’s a lot of work that will need to be done."

When asked about the case of Hardeep Singh Nijjar, the Canadian Prime Minister said, “We have had a discussion, Prime Minister (Modi) and I, about the importance of having the law enforcement to law enforcement dialogue, which is cooperation directly; the importance of addressing transnational repression as I noted, when we met, and obviously there is a judicial process that’s underway and I need to be careful about further commentary."

Last year, tensions had escalated between India and Canada when former Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau claimed that his government had “credible allegations" of India’s involvement in the killing of Khalistani terrorist Hardeep Singh Nijjar in Canada in 2023.

India has strongly denied the allegations, terming them “absurd" and “motivated," and has accused Canada of giving space to extremist and anti-India elements.

In the aftermath, India recalled six diplomats from Canada after they were declared “persons of interest" by Canadian authorities investigating Nijjar’s killing. Nijjar was shot dead outside a gurdwara in Surrey, British Columbia, on June 18, 2023.

After the meeting between PM Modi and his Canadian counterpart during the sidelines of the G7 Summit, the leaders reaffirmed the importance of India-Canada ties and agreed to take constructive steps to restore stability in the relationship, with the early return of High Commissioners to each other’s capitals, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA), said in a statement on Wednesday.

In his remarks, Carney also spoke about several global issues of importance.

On the situation in West Asia, Carney said, “G7 leaders also reiterated our commitment to the pursuit of peace and stability in the Middle East. Iran is the principal source of regional instability and terror, and we’ve been consistently clear that Iran can never have a nuclear weapon. We urge that the resolution of the Iranian crisis leads to a broader de-escalation of hostilities, including a ceasefire in Gaza."

Speaking about the Russia-Ukraine Conflict, Carney told media, “With our international partners, we’re launching a major new package of sanctions on individuals, companies, vessels, the shadow fleet to exert maximum pressure on Russia. We’re also sending over two billion dollars in funding for drones, ammunition, armoured vehicles to help Ukrainians defend their territory and a 2.3 billion dollar loan to help rebuild the infrastructure".

The G7 Summit is an annual gathering of leaders from the United States, the United Kingdom, France, Germany, Japan, Italy, Canada, and the European Union (EU). This marked PM Modi’s sixth consecutive participation in the G7 Summit. (ANI)

(The story has come from a syndicated feed and has not been edited by the Tribune Staff.)

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