'Had brief exchange with PM Modi in Laos': Justin Trudeau
The Canadian prime minister said he emphasised ‘there is work we need to do.’
Prime Minister Narendra Modi had a ‘brief exchange’ with his Canadian counterpart Justin Trudeau on the sidelines of the ASEAN Summit in Laos, the latter said on Friday.
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“I emphasised there is work we need to do,” the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC) News quoted Trudeau as saying, according to PTI.
While the Canadian prime minister did not reveal what he discussed with PM Modi, he mentioned to the media how ‘upholding the rule of law’ is a ‘fundamental responsibility.’
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“I won't go into details about what we talked about but what I've said many times is that the safety of Canadians and upholding the rule of law, is one of the fundamental responsibilities of any Canadian government and that's what I'll stay focused on,” Trudeau stated.
He was alluding to the June 2023 killing of pro-Khalistan figure and Canadian citizen Hardeep Singh Nijjar, who was shot dead by two masked gunmen in the Surrey town of the British Columbia province. In September, Trudeau speaking in the House Commons, accused ‘agents of the Government of India’ of killing Nijjar.
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This triggered a diplomatic row, with India calling out Trudeau's charge as ‘absurd’ and ‘motivated.’ Since then, the diplomacy between the two governments has continued in private.
The two prime ministers previously met on the sidelines on the G7 Leaders' Summit in Italy in June.
“I’m not going to get into the details of this important, sensitive issue that we need to follow up, but this was a commitment to work together, in the coming times, to deal with some very important issues," Trudeau said after that meeting.