Onus on Canada to resume free trade talks: India

The onus is on Canada to resume free trade negotiations, India’s High Commissioner to Ottawa Dinesh Patnaik has indicated.

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There were several rounds of negotiations towards India and Canada towards an early progress trade agreement or EPTA, but Ottawa paused talks in August 2023, a month before relations ruptured when then Prime Minister Justin Trudeau stated in the House of Commons that there were credible allegations of a potential link between Indian agents and the killing of pro-Khalistan figure Hardeep Singh Nijjar in Surrey, British Columbia, on June 18 that year.

While the bilateral relationship is undergoing a gradual reset, fresh talks over a trade deal have not commenced though Patnaik did indicate last month that India will be looking for a comprehensive economic partnership agreement or CEPA with Canada rather than the EPTA whenever they do resume.

The developments of the past two years continue to cast a shadow over ties. Asked whether India considered Canada a reliable supplier, Patnaik said, Not yet.

Patnaik said India had always believed Canada can be a reliable supplier but certain events in the past made us reconsider that. That referred to the cratering of relations since September 2023 over the Nijjar murder.