• Prime Minister Narendra Modi held a bilateral meeting with his Canadian counterpart Mark Carney, on the sidelines of the G7 Summit in Kananaskis, Alberta on June 17.

• This was the first in-person interaction between the two leaders since PM Carney assumed office in March 2025. 

• The meeting provided an opportunity for both sides to hold frank and forward-looking discussions on the state of India-Canada relations and the way ahead.

• The leaders agreed to designate new High Commissioners, with a view to returning to regular services to citizens and businesses in both countries. 

• The PMs agreed to take calibrated steps to restore stability to this important relationship, and the first of these steps that was agreed on was to restore High Commissioners to each other’s capitals at an early date. Other diplomatic steps will follow. 

• In 2024, India recalled its high commissioner and five other diplomats after Ottawa attempted to link them to the killing of pro-Khalistani separatist Hardeep Singh Nijjar. India also expelled an equal number of Canadian diplomats.

Other key points of the meeting:

• The leaders reaffirmed the importance of India-Canada ties, based on shared democratic values, respect for the rule of law and commitment to upholding the principles of sovereignty and territorial integrity. 

• They underscored the importance of restarting senior ministerial as well as working-level engagements across various domains to rebuild trust and bring momentum to the relationship.

• The leaders discussed opportunities for future collaboration in areas such as clean energy, digital transformation, artificial intelligence, LNG, food security, critical minerals, higher education, mobility, and supply chain resilience. 

• They reaffirmed their shared interest in promoting a free and open Indo-Pacific. The leaders also discussed the importance of restarting the stalled negotiations on the Early Progress Trade Agreement (EPTA), with a view to paving the way for a Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA).

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