Canada and India have agreed to a new roadmap to rebuild and strengthen diplomatic and economic ties after nearly two years of strained relations, signaling a major reset between the two nations.
The development follows high-level meetings between Canada’s Foreign Minister Anita Anand, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, and External Affairs Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar in New Delhi on Monday.
In a joint statement, both governments said they have committed to working together in key areas including critical minerals, trade, and agricultural value chains sectors vital to both countries’ long-term economic and environmental goals.
“Reviving this partnership will not only create opportunities for enhanced economic cooperation but also help mitigate vulnerabilities arising from shifting global alliances,” the statement noted.
Minister Anand emphasized the significance of this renewed collaboration, saying the meeting builds on the progress achieved earlier this year when Prime Minister Mark Carney hosted Prime Minister Modi at the G7 Summit in Kananaskis, Alberta.
“I met with Prime Minister Modi this morning in New Delhi,” Anand said. “Building on the momentum of Prime Minister Carney’s meeting with PM Modi this summer at the G7 Summit, Canada and India are elevating the relationship between our countries, while maintaining our law enforcement and security dialogue and expanding our economic relationship.”
The roadmap announced this week includes plans to enhance collaboration in the extraction and processing of critical minerals, a sector vital for clean energy technologies. Both governments have also agreed to explore ways to strengthen agricultural supply chains and diversify trade routes amid ongoing global uncertainty.
“Both of our governments agree on the importance of elevating the relationship,” Anand said, stressing that cooperation on economic, environmental, and technological fronts will be key to advancing shared priorities.
While the joint roadmap primarily focuses on economic cooperation, both sides underscored the importance of continuing dialogue on law enforcement and security issues.
India has long expressed unease over what it calls “fringe elements” in Canada supporting the separatist Khalistan movement. Canada, meanwhile, has emphasized the need to protect freedom of expression and assembly within the bounds of law.
Relations between Ottawa and New Delhi deteriorated sharply in 2023 following allegations by then–Prime Minister Justin Trudeau that Indian agents were involved in the killing of Canadian Sikh separatist Hardeep Singh Nijjar in British Columbia — claims that India categorically denied. The fallout led to diplomatic expulsions, a freeze in trade talks, and rising tensions among Canada’s large Sikh diaspora.
Since then, both countries have quietly engaged in backchannel diplomacy to restore trust, with renewed engagement gaining traction after Prime Minister Carney’s outreach earlier this year. Monday’s meeting in New Delhi marks the most visible sign yet of a thaw in bilateral relations.
While challenges remain, Monday’s meeting suggests that both sides are ready to move past the discord of recent years and focus on a forward-looking agenda rooted in mutual respect and shared interests.
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