Canada’s Prime Minister Mark Carney is expected to visit India in the first week of March, India’s High Commissioner to Canada, Dinesh Patnaik, told Reuters in an interview.
Carney is expected to sign a series of key agreements spanning uranium supply, energy, critical minerals, artificial intelligence, education and culture during his visit. Canada’s Energy Minister Tim Hodgson, who is visiting India this week, said the timing of the prime minister’s trip is still being finalised, reported Times of India.
“There are plans for the Prime Minister to visit at some point this year. It will depend on the progress we make,” Hodgson was quoted by Reuters as saying.
According to Reuters, Carney is seeking to diversify Canada’s alliances beyond the United States.
Speaking at the World Economic Forum in Davos last week, he received a rare standing ovation after declaring that “the old rules-based order is over” and urging middle powers such as Canada to “build coalitions to shape a fairer, more resilient world.”
The diplomatic outreach comes amid renewed global trade uncertainties, including US President Donald Trump’s recent threat to impose 100% tariffs on Canadian goods if Ottawa were to pursue a trade agreement with China.
Recent China Visit and Trade Recalibration
Carney recently visited Beijing on January 16, marking the first visit by a Canadian prime minister to China since 2017. During the visit, he met Chinese President Xi Jinping, Premier Li Qiang and Zhao Leji, Chairman of the Standing Committee of China’s National People’s Congress.
Following the meetings, Carney and Xi issued a joint statement outlining the pillars of a new Canada–China strategic partnership. The agreement includes preliminary steps to ease trade barriers and reduce tariffs on Canadian agri-food exports such as canola, lobsters, crabs and peas.
By March 1, tariffs on Canadian canola seed are expected to drop to around 15% from current combined rates of roughly 85%.
However, Carney later clarified that Canada does not intend to pursue a free trade agreement with China. Responding to Trump’s warning, he said: “We have no intention of doing that with China or any other non-market economy.” He added, “What we have done with China is to rectify some issues that developed in the last couple of years,” The Guardian reported.
Resetting Ties with India after Diplomatic Strain
Carney is also working to reset relations with India following former prime minister Justin Trudeau’s 2023 allegation that the Indian government was involved in the killing of Sikh separatist leader Hardeep Singh Nijjar—an allegation India has denied.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi attended the G7 summit last year at Carney’s invitation, and several members of Carney’s cabinet have visited India since, signalling a thaw in bilateral ties.
Formal negotiations for a Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) between India and Canada are expected to begin in March, following the resumption of stalled trade talks in November. Carney is expected to sign agreements with India covering nuclear energy, oil and gas, environmental cooperation, artificial intelligence, quantum computing, education and culture.
A proposed 10-year uranium supply deal worth C$2.8 billion is also likely to be included. While Hodgson did not confirm the uranium agreement, he said: “Canada is happy to sell uranium under the Canada-India nuclear cooperation agreement as long as India is prepared to abide by International Energy Agency safeguards. We know that India is a major nuclear country and it has major plans to grow its civilian use of nuclear energy. So that would be one of the topics I expect that we will discuss with my counterpart.”
Between Hodgson’s visit and Carney’s expected trip, both countries are likely to announce agreements on energy and mining, including critical minerals, crude oil and liquefied natural gas (LNG). “We need to focus on economies that are large and growing. India squarely falls into that category. India is a growing user of critical minerals that Canada can supply,” Hodgson said.
Strategic Urgency amid Global Uncertainty
India’s High Commissioner to Canada, Dinesh Patnaik said both sides are moving with urgency after nearly two years of stalled engagement.
As per TOI, Referring to Carney’s Davos remarks, he noted, “Now we are living in a world where the natural rules-based order which gave a certainty to the world is not functioning. (We) should work together to have an agreement that protects us from the vagaries of the international order.”
Carney has reiterated that Canada “respects its commitments under the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement to not pursue free trade agreements with non-market economies.”
India, meanwhile, is actively pursuing new trade arrangements. Talks with the European Union are expected to conclude this week, while a CEPA pact with Canada could be finalised within a year. Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal and Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman are expected to visit Canada soon.
Patnaik said a court case is underway in Canada against four individuals accused of Nijjar’s murder.
“If evidence comes out that there were Indians involved, India will take action,” he said.
India’s National Security Advisor is scheduled to visit Ottawa next month as part of ongoing engagements to exchange intelligence and discuss security cooperation.
Bilateral Ties Gaining Momentum
Carney, Canada’s 24th prime minister, was elected leader of the Liberal Party and sworn in as prime minister in March 2025. He met Prime Minister Modi on the sidelines of the G20 Leaders’ Summit in Johannesburg, where both leaders welcomed “the positive momentum in bilateral relations since their last meeting in June at the G7 Summit in Kananaskis” and endorsed a new roadmap for engagement announced by foreign ministers in October.
Following the 7th Ministerial Dialogue on Trade and Investment held in New Delhi on November 13, 2025, the two sides agreed to formally launch CEPA negotiations covering goods, services, investment, agriculture and agri-food, digital trade, mobility and sustainable development.
They expressed confidence that the agreement would “serve as a powerful economic anchor and help more than double two-way trade to $70 billion by 2030.”
The leaders also agreed to enhance diplomatic staffing, strengthen people-to-people ties and continue high-level ministerial and business exchanges. Carney has accepted Prime Minister Modi’s invitation to visit India in early 2026.
