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More than a year after ties between India and Canada strained, New Delhi is considering mending the same, after Mark Carney’s election as Liberal Party leader, succeeding Justin Trudeau as PM.
Flags of India and Canada (Getty Image)
India is considering mending its relations with Canada, hours after Mark Carney was elected the new leader of the country’s ruling Liberal Party and the successor to Justin Trudeau.
The fresh development comes amid reports of Canada’s intelligence chief, Daniel Rogers’ likely visit to India in mid-March to attend an annual intelligence gathering.
This would be the first meeting between the two sides ever since the authorities of both nations met in Singapore for discussions over the killing of Khalistani terrorist Hardeep singh nijjar.
Addressing reporters, Carney had said Canada was looking to “diversify” its trade relationships with like-minded nations in the wake of its ongoing trade war with the United States.
“There are opportunities to rebuild relationships with India, there needs to be a shared sense of values around commercial relationships and if I am the Prime Minister, I look forward to the opportunity to build that,” Carney said last Tuesday in Calgary before being elected as the leader of the governing Liberal Party.
India-Canada ties saw tensions after Prime Minister Justin Trudeau in September 2023 in the House of Commons claimed there were “credible allegations” of a potential link between Indian agents and the killing of Nijjar in Surrey, British Columbia.
New Delhi, however, consistently denied the allegations, with the Ministry of External Affairs saying Canada has “presented us no evidence” in support of the serious allegations Ottawa chose to level against India and Indian diplomats.
As the controversy snowballed, both countries, in a tit-for-tat move, recalled their diplomats.
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India also temporarily suspended the issuance of visas to Canadian citizens. The visa services were resumed several weeks later.
India has been maintaining that the main issue between the two countries is that of Canada giving space to pro-Khalistan elements operating from Canadian soil with impunity.
