(OTTAWA) International Trade Minister Mary Ng is expected to lead a trade mission to India this fall and says it “won’t be years” before Canada signs a first form of trade deal with the country, more 10 years after the start of negotiations.
This is what she mentioned at the end of the visit of the Indian Minister of Commerce, Piyush Goyal, who was in Ottawa this week.
“India’s presence here is a testament to our strong bilateral trade relationship and our commitment to continue to do so,” Mr.me Ng.
Since March 2022, Canada and India have been negotiating to reach an early progress trade agreement. This type of agreement is limited to certain industries, rather than the whole economy.
As early as 2010, the two countries began negotiations to conclude a comprehensive agreement, but the discussions ended in 2017. So it was five years later that the two countries resumed the conversation for a first progress trade agreement.
In a joint statement, Mr.me Ng and Mr. Goyal said they wanted to “strengthen cooperation” between their two countries in “key sectors of mutual interest” such as essential minerals, clean technology, renewable energy and artificial intelligence.
It is unclear which of these areas would be part of an interim deal and which would be put on hold pending further talks on a broader deal. However, Minister Ng is not worried that Canada will find itself stuck in the interim phase.
“We are building a lasting relationship, and it is an integral part of Canada’s Indo-Pacific strategy,” she said.
When asked by reporters whether signing the tentative deal would take months or years, Mr.me Ng replied that “it wouldn’t take years”.
She noted that since the official start of negotiations, there have been seven rounds of talks. According to her, there is no need to set a deadline.
“If we continue at this pace and achieve the continued progress that we both want, then I think we will get there,” she said.
A long process
Some groups have urged Canada to push for a deal to be signed as early as this year.
However, former Canadian envoy to India Nadir Patel has pointed out that setting a deadline could make it difficult for both sides to convince themselves that a fair and equitable agreement has been reached.
“Imposing deadlines in negotiations like these is not the most effective way to reach an agreement. In this case, the willingness of both parties to achieve a win-win deal is much more important,” Mr Patel explained.
“I would say that I am cautiously optimistic that a deal can be reached in a relatively short time, but that is by no means a done deal. »
Separately, Mr. Patel raised that Mr. Goyal is an important minister in Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government. He also argued that the minister’s visit to Canadian soil could help put the negotiations back on track after the COVID-19 pandemic and the election, which forced the talks to be put on hold.
“There is clearly a priority given to closer trade, economic and, by extension, bilateral relations. I think that bodes well for Canada and India,” said Patel, who is now a senior strategic advisor at Norton Rose Fulbright Canada.
More meetings to come
Minister Ng is due to travel to India in August for a G20 trade meeting, while Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is expected to travel to New Delhi next month for the G20 leaders’ summit.
In October, M.me Ng announced plans to lead a “Team Canada trade mission” to India, which usually means a visit from business leaders and provincial officials.
While media leaks suggested that negotiations for an interim trade deal broke down on several fronts last fall, minister Goyal corrected the situation and assured that the teams had made “significant progress” in recent months .
“The rapid conclusion of the agreement will send a strong signal to the rest of the world on the strengthening of relations between our two countries,” he said in a press scrum.
Neither of the two ministers specified which points are still under discussion. India has generally shielded entire industries from foreign competition, while changes in agricultural import regulations have chilled Canadian farmers.
This week’s joint statement also noted that New Delhi wants top Canadian universities to establish campuses in India.
human rights
Meanwhile, in the House of Commons, the New Democratic Party (NDP) has called on the Liberal government to further voice its concerns over India’s treatment of minorities.
Human Rights Watch has called on Prime Minister Modi’s government to end its “serious regression of human rights and constitutional protections,” prompting the NDP to call for a boycott of some G20 events.
Minister Ng said Canadians are working to discuss their “really important” values with their counterparts, while expanding trade ties.
“I think it is possible to defend human rights while maintaining a commercial relationship with a democratic country,” she said.