Brief Context
In News India and Canada held the 7th Ministerial Dialogue on Trade and Investment (MDTI) recently. About India and Canada reaffirmed mutual respect and forward-looking cooperation, agreeing to deepen strategic collaboration in critical minerals, clean energy, aerospace, and dual-use technologies. They emphasized resilient, diversified supply chains—especially in agriculture—and committed to a transparent investment climate.
Source Content
Syllabus: GS2/IR
In News
- India and Canada held the 7th Ministerial Dialogue on Trade and Investment (MDTI) recently.
About
- India and Canada reaffirmed mutual respect and forward-looking cooperation, agreeing to deepen strategic collaboration in critical minerals, clean energy, aerospace, and dual-use technologies.
- They emphasized resilient, diversified supply chains—especially in agriculture—and committed to a transparent investment climate.
- Both sides highlighted the importance of people-to-people ties and pledged continued ministerial engagement with trade and investment stakeholders in early 2026.
India-Canada Relations
Overview:
- India-Canada ties are underpinned by shared values of democracy, cultural diversity, expanding economic engagement and long-standing people-to-people ties.
- Both sides have dialogue mechanisms such as Ministerial levelStrategic, Trade and Energy dialogues; Foreign Office Consultations; Joint Committee Meeting on Environment and other sector specific joint working groups (JWG).
Economic Relations:
- In 2024, India–Canada bilateral trade in goods totaled CAD 13.32 billion, with India exporting CAD 8.02 billion and importing CAD 5.30 billion.
- Bilateral services trade in 2024 stood at CAD 18.6 billion, with India’s exports at CAD 3.5 billion and imports at CAD 15.1 billion.
Security Cooperation:
- India and Canada engage on counter-terrorism through the Joint Working Group (JWG) established in 1997, with cooperation further strengthened by the 2018 Framework for Countering Terrorism and Violent Extremism.
Civil Nuclear Cooperation:
- India and Canada signed a Nuclear Cooperation Agreement (NCA) in June 2010, which came into force in September 2013, enabling peaceful nuclear collaboration.
- Further cooperation in science, technology, and innovation was formalized through an MoU during Prime Minister Trudeau’s visit in February 2018.
Energy Cooperation:
- India and Canada held a Ministerial-level Energy Dialogue in September 2016, which was expanded in February 2018 to include electricity, energy efficiency, and renewables.
- Further engagement occurred when India’s Petroleum Secretary participated in the World Petroleum Congress 2023 in Calgary.
Space:
- India and Canada have built a longstanding space partnership through MoUs signed between ISRO and the Canadian Space Agency in 1996, 2003, and 2015, focusing on satellite tracking, space astronomy, and peaceful space technology cooperation.
- ANTRIX, ISRO’s commercial arm, has launched several Canadian nanosatellites, including Canada’s first low-Earth orbit satellite aboard ISRO’s 100th PSLV mission in January 2018.
Source :ET