Anita Anand and India’s PM Modi agree on trade road map

Foreign Affairs Minister Anita Anand met India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi during her three-day official visit to India as the two countries work to strengthen ties after two years of diplomatic strain.

Anand posted a picture on social media on Monday, which showed her sitting across from Modi in New Delhi.

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Anand said the meeting with the Indian prime minister was about building on the momentum from earlier this summer, when Modi was visiting Canada at the G7 summit and met Prime Minister Mark Carney.

Anand released a joint statement with her Indian counterpart, Subrahmanyam Jaishankar, offering a road map to a stronger trade partnership between the two countries — once again reviving bilateral trade discussions which have started and stalled at various points since 2010.

In the statement, Anand and Jaishankar said the meeting in New Delhi is continuing the conversation from earlier this summer and will “take calibrated measures to restore stability in the relationship.”

Amid ongoing economic uncertainty and rising geopolitical tensions, a “strong and resilient Canada-India bilateral relationship is essential,” the two foreign affairs ministers said.

They said early initiatives in trade co-operation include resuming the Canada-India CEO forum early next year, which would bring together business leaders to talk investments with a focus on priority sectors such as clean technology, infrastructure, agri-food and digital innovation.

Saskatchewan Premier visited India in 2024 to help maintain and promote trade opportunities, attract new investments, and “showcase Saskatchewan’s capacity to foster food and energy security goals.”

The mission focused on natural resources, agriculture and sustainability. In 2023, the ministry noted, Saskatchewan’s agri-food exports to India added up to more than $700 million.

Canada’s total exports to India were valued at $5.1 billion last year, the ministry said, and Saskatchewan was responsible for $1.3 billion, or 26 per cent. Saskatchewan’s largest exports to India last year were lentils, potash, wood pulp, peas and non-durum wheat.

Other early initiatives discussed by Anand and Jaishankar include partnerships to expand access to artificial intelligence, re-establishing ministerial talks on energy collaboration and increasing bilateral co-operation on climate action.

As the bilateral relationship deepens, both ministers pledged to expand collaboration on global issues.

The meeting, along with Carney’s words with Modi at the G7, are clear signs of a mend between India and Canada.

In September 2023, the Liberal government accused New Delhi of playing a role in the assassination of a Sikh activist near Vancouver earlier that year, and RCMP have since accused India of widespread criminality in Canada.

The chill began to lift slightly in June when Carney invited Modi to the G7 summit in Alberta, and both countries agreed to restore their top diplomats.

In her visit, Anand was set to meet with the Indian Trade Minister Piyush Goyal, who said he had a “productive discussion” last Saturday with Canadian Trade Minister Maninder Sidhu.

Sidhu says the two countries can collaborate on clean technology, agriculture and critical minerals, while Piyush says trade and investment “should be grounded in the principles of mutual respect, trust and balance.”

Anand is expected to address the media on Tuesday, after meeting in New Delhi with her Indian counterpart Subrahmanyam Jaishankar and with plans to meet business leaders in Mumbai.

Read more:

• What Canada’s row with India means for trade relationship
• Sask. touts significant growth in agri-food exports to India
• New website delivers advanced tools and data for pulse crop producers