Canada's Foreign Minister Anita Anand says Ottawa is working fast to advance India trade deal

Canadian Foreign Minister Anita Anand said Monday that Canada and India will move quickly to advance a trade deal after two years of strained relations, noting Ottawa has a new foreign policy in response to US President Donald Trump's trade war. Anand's statement follows a meeting between Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi at the Group of 20 summit in South Africa this past weekend, where the leaders agreed to restart stalled talks for a new trade deal.

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Relations between Canada and India have been strained since Canadian police accused New Delhi of playing a role in the June 2023 assassination of a Canadian Sikh activist near Vancouver. "The leaders were adamant that this work proceed as quickly as possible so that timing is going to be expeditious," Anand said in a telephone interview with The Associated Press.

Carney will visit India early next year. Anand noted Carney's goal to double non-US trade over the next decade. Canada is one of the most trade-dependent countries in the world, and more than 75 per cent of Canada's exports go to the US. Most exports to the US are exempted by the USMCA trade agreement but that deal is up for review in 2026.