Canadian PM Carney begins key India visit

Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney landed in India on Friday where he hopes to reset ties and double trade, offsetting the damage from his country's fracturing relations with the United States.

Carney's visit is a key step forward in ties that effectively collapsed in 2023 after Ottawa accused New Delhi of orchestrating a deadly campaign against Sikh activists on Canadian territory.

He arrived in the financial hub of Mumbai, Indian broadcasters reported, where he is expected to address business leaders before travelling to the capital New Delhi and meeting with Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday, the final day of his visit.

Carney's office said discussions will focus on "ambitious new partnerships in trade, energy, technology and artificial intelligence (AI), talent and culture, and defence".

Before Carney took office last year, Ottawa accused Modi's government of direct involvement in the 2023 killing of Hardeep Singh Nijjar, a naturalised Canadian citizen who was part of a fringe group that advocated for an independent Sikh state called Khalistan.

Former prime minister Justin Trudeau's government further alleged India had directed a campaign of intimidation against Sikh activists across Canada.

India has repeatedly dismissed the allegations, which sent diplomatic relations into freefall, with both nations expelling a string of top diplomats in 2024.

Ties improved after Carney took office in March 2025, and envoys have since been restored.

After India, Carney will travel on to Australia and Japan, part of a broad effort to pivot the Canadian economy away from excessive reliance on its southern neighbour, reports BSS.