As India and Canada look for a year-end agreement, Modi talks to Carney about trade agreements.

In an effort to finalize a free trade deal between India and Canada by the end of the year, Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his Canadian colleague Mark Carney spoke over the phone on Wednesday.

The discussion took place before Canadian Foreign Minister Anita Anand’s arrival in India later on Tuesday. Meanwhile, Maninder Sidhu, her colleague and minister of international commerce, is already in Delhi with the “biggest Canadian commercial delegation to India in 30 years.”

Announcing the conversation on X, Prime Minister Modi said: “Had a warm and productive conversation with Prime Minister Mark Carney. We agreed to build on the positive momentum in India-Canada ties and work towards concrete outcomes across key areas of our Strategic Partnership, including trade, energy, technology, security and people-to-people ties. Together, India and Canada are contributing towards a more stable and prosperous world.”

According to the Canadian Premier’s office, the Prime Ministers welcomed the increased engagement between the two countries over the past year and underscored the opportunity to build on this renewed momentum. “To that end, the leaders reaffirmed their commitment to conclude negotiations on a CEPA at the earliest opportunity, supporting efforts to double two-way trade by 2030,” it said.

They also discussed the impacts of geopolitical instability in the Indo-Pacific region and the need for trusted partners in the energy and agriculture sectors. Modi is scheduled to visit Canada in December.

India is the first stop on Anand’s two-nation tour, the second being the UAE. She is scheduled to meet External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar. According to the Canadian department of foreign affairs, trade and development, Anand will discuss priority areas such as trade, energy, people-to-people ties, besides security and defence cooperation in her meeting with Jaishankar.

The two countries are currently negotiating a free-trade pact — the India-Canada Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA). The two sides concluded the fifth round of negotiations in Canada last week and are hoping to close the deal by the year-end.

Sidhu met Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal during the day and is scheduled to visit Mumbai and Bengaluru, too. About their meeting, Goyal said on X: “Engaged in a productive discussion with Maninder Sidhu…. Discussed advancing the India-Canada Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) negotiations, with a focus on a balanced, mutually beneficial agreement that enhances market access and unlocks new trade and investment opportunities.”