Now a month into governing, Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney’s foreign policy is coming into focus, sharpened by the priorities laid out in a recent ministerial mandate letter and this week’s Throne Speech, and moves by his new foreign affairs minister.
On Tuesday in Ottawa, King Charles III delivered a historic Throne Speech. The King, speaking on behalf of Carney’s government, said that “Canada is ready to lead. This will be demonstrated in June, when Canada convenes the G7 Summit.”
Carney also issued a uniform mandate letter to his ministers last week. In the letter, Carney tasked his cabinet with “strengthening our collaboration with reliable trading partners and allies around the world.”
Canada’s new foreign affairs minister, Anita Anand, is putting this pledge in motion. Her first formal bilateral call was with U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, followed by calls with her German and Ukrainian counterparts. India’s external affairs minister, S. Jaishankar, was fourth in line, underlining the importance Ottawa attaches to ‘resetting’ the relationship. Both Jaishankar and Anand issued positive messages on social media following their call.
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi has been invited to every G7 leaders’ summit since 2019. A Carney-Modi meeting at this year’s summit in Alberta would represent a significant thaw in the bilateral relationship.
Since the April 28 federal election, Carney’s office has published readouts of meetings or calls with leaders from France, the U.S., Ukraine, Japan, New Zealand, Australia, Denmark, the U.K., Spain, Mexico, the Netherlands, Italy, Germany, Poland, Norway, and Jordan.
