Canadian Trade Minister Postpones Visit To India, Negotiations Put On Hold

Canada put the negotiations on hold after India raised it’s concerns over certain political developments in Canada. An official noted that these will be resumed once both nations solve their issues.

Canada’s Trade Minister Mary Ng postponed her trade mission to India set for October, a government official said on Friday. This development comes amid increasing tensions in diplomatic relations between the two nations. 

Shanti Cosentino, a spokesperson for the minister, said, “At this time, we are postponing the upcoming trade mission to India,” without providing any reason for the same, as reported by Reuters.

Additionally, Canada will resume trade negotiations with India after the nations resolve their political issues, a senior official said. The negotiations for a free trade agreement between India and Canada have been placed on hold since September 2 this year. 

The government official added that Canada put the negotiations on hold after India raised it’s concerns over certain political developments in Canada. The official said, “India has shown a strong resentment against certain political developments in Canada, and therefore, for the time being, till these political issues are settled, we have paused the negotiations,” reported PTI. However, the official noted that these negotiations will resume once the political issues are sorted out. 

Notably, during the G20 visit of Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau on September 10, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi expressed his concerns about the continuing anti-India activities of extremist groups in Canada that were promoting secessionism. The Indian PM noted that these activities posed a threat to the Indian community in Canada and incited violence against it’s diplomats residing there. 

More than half a dozen rounds of talks on trade agreements have taken place between the two nations so far. Last year in March, India and Canada restarted discussions for an interim trade agreement, formally called the Early Progress Trade Agreement (EPTA). Generally, these kinds of agreements involve the countries reducing or eliminating customs duties to a large extent on the maximum number of goods traded between them. Both parties also liberalise norms to promote trade in services and attract investments. 

India’s industry is hoping to secure duty-free access to products like textiles and leather, in addition to smooth visa norms to facilitate the movement of people. Canada has expressed interest in sectors like dairy and agricultural products. The bilateral trade between the nations increased to $8.16 billion in 2022-23, up from $7 billion in 2021-22, the report noted.