Toronto: Canadian political leaders in the international trade space have underscored the need for Ottawa to have a dialogue with India as it seeks to diversify and reduce its reliance on the United States.
Their comments came even as opposition has been voiced to the invitation to Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi to attend the G7 leaders’ summit in Kananaskis in Alberta next week.
“The G7 is an important avenue for the Prime Minister to discuss some of Canada’s economic priorities. As you know, it’s about economic collaboration, it’s about issues to do with community and public safety,” Canada’s Minister of International Trade Maninder Sidhu told reporters in Ottawa on Wednesday.
Without mentioning Modi, he said he had heard concerns from some constituents over invitations to some leaders, but, he stressed, “I think it’s important to note that this time of (economic) crisis, we need to be able to collaborate and, of course, work out some issues.”
He pointed out public safety and tackling foreign interference were among the core principles already outlined by Prime Minister Mark Carney in his agenda for the G7 but “it’s also about economic resiliency and economic collaboration”.
{{/usCountry}}He pointed out public safety and tackling foreign interference were among the core principles already outlined by Prime Minister Mark Carney in his agenda for the G7 but “it’s also about economic resiliency and economic collaboration”.
{{/usCountry}}His point of view was echoed by Parliamentary Secretary for International Trade Yasir Naqvi who said, “We have to make sure as we are looking at ways to diversify our economy, lessening our reliance on the United States, there are opportunities for Canadian businesses around the world and India is a big part of that conversation.”
He said there was “no excuse” for violence on Canadian territory, but added that “diplomacy means talking to people face to face and I think this is a very important opportunity for Canada to engage with India”.
Rob Oliphant, Parliamentary Secretary for Foreign Affairs was in agreement, as he said that Carney was “trying to open the door on relationships to say we need to diversify our trade vastly.”
Among those opposing the visit was Liberal Party MP Sukh Dhaliwal, who met Carney in this regard on Wednesday. Later, he said that “now that he (Modi) has been invited, we need to move forward.”
However, Dhaliwal said the PM was “alarmed” and “very strong” on issues like the killing of pro-Khalistan figure Hardeep Singh Nijjar in Surrey, British Columbia on June 18, 2023.
In an interview in French to Radio-Canada on Wednesday, Carney confirmed he discussed that matter with Modi when the two leaders spoke on June 6.
“We’ve made progress with India in a bilateral sense. They are okay with having a legal process between law enforcement entities,” he added.
The opposition Conservative Party’s leader Pierre Poilievre had earlier supported Carney’s decision to invite Modi as “necessary” for Canada’s trade interests.