All trade, no costumes: What to know about Carney's trip to India, as government signals security shift
OTTAWA — Prime Minister Mark Carney departs Thursday on his first travels to India, Australia and Japan as prime minister.
While Carney seeks to deepen his focus on economic diversification, he must manage ongoing concerns of transnational repression from India, the unravelling of which led to the rupture in the relationship that the prime minister has been trying to repair.
Here is what to expect from Carney’s trip to India:
Domestic security tensions
A senior government official speaking at a not-for-attribution briefing to reporters on Wednesday made a significant statement about the state of Canada’s security issues against India.
Since 2023, ministers and other officials have said it had concerns over agents of the governments of India being linked to homicides and other violence in Canada.
Asked whether it still believed that Indian government agents were involved in such crimes, a senior government official said, “we have a very robust diplomatic engagement, including between national security advisors. And I think we can say we’re confident that that activity is not continuing, or we would not be having this type of discussion.”
That same day, Sikh groups gathered on Parliament Hill to decry Carney’s trip for the message it sent to the community, particularly those involved in pro-Khalistan activism, who say they remain targets of India’s.
The Word Sikh Organization issued a statement after the briefing by officials to reject their assessment:
“I can say with complete conviction that the claim made by this senior government official is utterly false. It does not align with what Sikh Canadians are experiencing on the ground and what we are seeing firsthand,” said its president, Danish Singh in a statement.
“Nothing has been presented publicly to suggest that Indian criminal networks have been dismantled, that accountability has been secured, or that safeguards have been implemented to protect Canadian citizens. We can’t deny what we are seeing with our own eyes.”
Sukh Dhaliwal, the Liberal MP whose riding was where Sikh activist Hardeep Singh Nijjar was killed in 2023, said he has been in contact with the Prime Minister’s Office to express concerns from constituents who believe that the rule of law ought to take precedence as Canada normalizes relations with India.
“They are concerned,” he said.
Earlier in the week, Foreign Affairs Minister Anita Anand told reporters that it takes the concerns of the Sikh community “very seriously,” and that senior officials from the Canadian and Indian governments speak regularly to discuss security issues, including the “rule of law.”
Government officials both on Wednesday and in public at previous times have said that India has been collaborating with ongoing investigations, which Trudeau’s government had said was not the case. India has denied any involvement in Nijjar’s killing, with his envoy to Canada recently underscoring its position it was not provided with evidence at the time that accusation was made.
While Carney will travel to Mumbai and New Delhi, he will not stop in Punjab, the state home to a majority of Sikhs which the pro-Khalistan movement wants to see carved out into a separate state. That breaks from the trips taken by both Trudeau and former Conservative prime minister Stephen Harper who each visited Punjab.
The senior official said given the prime minister’s focus on shoring up investment and diversification, he will visit India’s financial capital and its government capital, noting also Carney’s schedule, with him set to visit three countries on what is his second trip to Asia this year.
Trade deal launch
Government officials say Carney’s trip to India will formalize the launch of negotiations of a long sought after comprehensive trade deal with India.
“We have ambitious timelines for its formalization, but it’s being formally launched now and it will take a number of months to reach maturity, but we have already begun the process. Ministers have been in touch, our negotiators have been touch. The process of negotiating the (agreement) is underway. The formal launch will take place during the visit, but the negotiations have begun,” the official says.
At the same time, the government expects “a number of” memorandums of understanding to be signed and different “commercial arrangements deals” throughout the trip to Australia and Japan.
Dinesh Patnaik, India’s High Commissioner to Canada, says he expects agreements to be found covering at least 20 to 30 issues. He also expects a Canada-India trade deal could be signed within a year.
Canada reengages with India at the time both where both are facing tariffs from U.S. President Donald Trump, although India recently stuck a deal with the U.S. and Canada enjoys exemptions under goods covered by the Canada-U.S.-Mexico agreement.
Government officials named India’s demand for energy, agricultural products and critical minerals, which they say is matched by Canada’s ability to provide it.
“We have the world’s fourth largest oil reserves. We are the world fifth largest producer of natural gas with an electricity grid that is over 80 per cent clean. We are one of the world largest suppliers of uranium providing around 24 per cent of the worlds supply in 2024,” the official said.
Carney is set to meet with India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday in New Delhi after spending the first part of his trip meeting with Indian business leaders in Mumbai.
No costumes
Most Canadians remember former prime minister Justin Trudeau’s first trip to India back in 2018 for the ridicule he endured for donning lavish traditional garb while those he met with wore regular business attire.
Government officials, when asked Wednesday whether that would be the case for Carney, said to their knowledge, the answer was simply “no.”
Davos 2.0?
Carney will be the first prime minister to address Australian parliament in almost 20 years, with Harper being the last prime minister to do so.
It will be the first international speech Carney will give since he earned global applause at the World Economic Forum in Davos back in January, where he urged middle powers to unite in the face of “hegemons.”
Australian lawmakers were among those who publicly backed Carney’s words, with Canada viewing Australia as a likeminded middle power.
Government officials said when the prime minister speaks on this trip he will be emphasizing “the need to diversify, the needs for middle powers to work together.” He was not only set to address Australia’s Parliament, but also take part in a separate fireside chat.
Carney is set to visit Sydney, where he will meet Australian business leaders. While in its capital of Canberra, he will meet with Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and other members of cabinet.
After Australia, the prime minister will visit then Japan where he will meet with Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi, as well as members of its business community in Toyoko.
Premiers invited
While Saskatchewan Premier Scott Moe and New Brunswick Premier Susan Holt will join the delegation, government officials said all premiers were invited as Carney seeks to deepen ties across the federation.
This marks the second time Moe has travelled with Carney. The first time was last month when he went to China.
At the same time, both provinces have big interests in India, with Saskatchewan relying on its export market access to India and New Brunswick’s growing as it finds itself especially trade exposed to Trump’s tariff threats.
Also joining the ministers of finance, defence, international trade and foreign affairs will be Matt Jeneroux, Carney’s newest MP after crossing the floor from the Conservatives, who was named as a special advisor on economic and security issues.
National Post
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