Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau met his Indian counterpart Narendra Modi on the sidelines of the G-7 summit here and discussed a wide range of issues, including cooperation on climate change, COVID-19 and what’s next a free, open and inclusive Indo-Pacific region beyond the Ukraine crisis, his office announced on Tuesday. Modi and Trudeau met Monday at Schloss Elmau, the scenic summit location in southern Germany.
The leaders welcomed the growing commercial relationship between Canada and India, as well as the long-standing people-to-people ties between the two countries, Prime Minister Trudeau’s office said in a statement. “The prime ministers also discussed cooperation on climate change and environment, development of renewable energy sources, global response to the COVID-19 pandemic and in the free, open and inclusive Indo-Pacific region. “, did he declare.
The two leaders exchanged views on pressing issues discussed at the G7, including pandemic response, resilient democracies and food security. They also discussed Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, the statement added. India, the United States and several other world powers have spoken of the need to ensure a free, open and prosperous Indo-Pacific amid China’s growing military maneuvers in the region.
The two Prime Ministers also discussed opportunities to strengthen cooperation between Canada and India, both bilaterally and at the G20. On Monday, Modi said he reviewed the full gamut of Indo-Canadian relations during the fruitful meeting with Trudeau. “There is immense potential to strengthen cooperation in sectors like trade, culture and agriculture,” Modi tweeted.
External Affairs Ministry spokesman Arindam Bagchi said the two leaders discussed bilateral relations and agreed to expand trade and economic ties, security and counter-terrorism cooperation as well as interpersonal ties. As leaders of strong democracies sharing common values, they had a productive meeting, according to a press release issued by the Foreign Office.
“They also exchanged views on global and regional issues of mutual concern,” he added. It was the first face-to-face bilateral meeting between the two leaders in more than four years.
Trudeau had visited India in February 2018 during which he had bilateral talks with Modi. It was also the first meeting between the two leaders since Trudeau, who had supported unrestful farmers in India, said Canada would always be there to defend the right to peaceful protest and expressed concern over the situation.
His remarks angered India, which summoned Canada’s High Commissioner to New Delhi and told him that such remarks constituted “unacceptable interference” in the country’s internal affairs and that these actions, if continued, would have a “seriously detrimental” impact on bilateral relations. . Canada has a significant number of Indians, mainly from Punjab. In February 2021, Trudeau contacted Prime Minister Modi and requested a shipment of Covid-19 vaccines from India, which sent a shipment of Covishield to Canada a month later.
Trudeau had praised India and said that if the world were to conquer COVID-19, it would be important because of India’s enormous pharmaceutical capacity and Prime Minister Modi’s leadership in sharing that capacity with the world. Two-way trade stood at USD 12.4 billion in 2021. More than 600 Canadian companies have a presence in India, while Indian companies in Canada are active in the fields of information technology, natural resources, steel and banks. Negotiations for a comprehensive economic partnership between the two parties resumed in April 2022.
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