New Delhi, February 27 Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney began a four-day visit to India on Friday, with a focus on forging a strong partnership, particularly in areas such as trade, energy, technology, and artificial intelligence.
Accompanied by a high-level delegation, Carney arrived in Mumbai, where he will meet with leading Indian and Canadian business leaders, financial experts, and innovators.
"India is the world's fastest-growing major economy. We have just arrived in Mumbai to meet with business leaders and forge partnerships that will unlock new opportunities for Canadian workers and businesses," Canadian Prime Minister Carney said on social media.
Carney will travel to New Delhi on Sunday and hold extensive talks with his Indian counterpart, Narendra Modi, on Monday.
The Canadian leader's visit is primarily aimed at giving a new impetus to the bilateral ties, which had come under severe strain following a diplomatic row over the killing of a Khalistani separatist in 2023.
It is learned that trade, energy, and technology will be the main focus of discussions between Carney and Modi.
The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) on Thursday said that both leaders will review the progress achieved in various areas of the India-Canada strategic partnership, building on their earlier meetings in Kananaskis and Johannesburg in June and November, respectively.
The two prime ministers will also attend the India-Canada CEOs Forum on Monday.
"The visit comes at an important juncture in the normalization of India-Canada bilateral relations," the MEA said.
In the last few months, India and Canada have taken several steps to normalize the relations.
The India-Canada relations hit a low point following then Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's allegations in 2023 of a potential Indian involvement in the killing of Hardeep Singh Nijjar.
India had dismissed Trudeau's accusation as "absurd".
In October 2024, India recalled its high commissioner and five other diplomats after Ottawa attempted to link them to the Nijjar case.
India also expelled an equal number of Canadian diplomats.
However, Liberal Party leader Carney's victory in the parliamentary election in April last year helped initiate the process of resetting relations.
Subsequently, both sides have already posted their high commissioners in each other's capitals.
In June last year, Prime Minister Modi travelled to Canada's Kananaskis to attend the G7 summit.
Modi and Carney held extensive talks on the margins of the summit with a focus on rebuilding the ties.