Modi, Carney agree to accelerate India-Canada ties towards Free Trade Agreement
Synopsis
India and Canada are moving faster than at any point in recent history — from diplomatic freeze to a potential Free Trade Agreement in under a year. With Modi expected in Ottawa in December and a 300-strong Canadian business delegation heading to India next week, the reset is no longer symbolic; it is transactional.
Key Takeaways
PM Modi and Canadian PM Mark Carney held a phone call on 13 October 2026 , agreeing to advance their Strategic Partnership .
Canadian High Commissioner Christopher Cooter described the bilateral relationship as the best it has ever been, with the two leaders having met four times in just over a year.
Canadian Trade Minister Maninder Sidhu will visit India next week with a delegation of 300 business representatives — Canada's largest-ever trade delegation to any country.
A Free Trade Agreement could be signed during Modi's expected visit to Canada in early December 2026 ; negotiations only began in March 2026 .
Canadian Foreign Minister Anita Anand is visiting India, marking her 10th meeting with EAM S.
Jaishankar in the past year.
A defence-related visit between the two countries is expected in the near future, deepening security ties.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney on Tuesday, 13 October 2026, held a telephonic conversation and agreed to build on the positive momentum in India-Canada bilateral relations, working towards concrete outcomes across key pillars of their Strategic Partnership. The call signals a marked diplomatic thaw between the two nations after a prolonged period of tensions.
What Modi Said After the Call
'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,' Modi wrote on X following the conversation.
'Together, India and Canada are contributing towards a more stable and prosperous world,' he added.
High Commissioner Signals 'Best-Ever' Bilateral Ties
Earlier on Tuesday, Canadian High Commissioner to India Christopher Cooter described the chemistry between the two prime ministers as 'excellent', saying the two countries had never shared as good a relationship as they do currently. Speaking ahead of Canadian Foreign Minister Anita Anand's official visit to India, Cooter noted that Modi and Carney had met four times in just over a year — an unusually high frequency for leaders of two countries that were locked in a diplomatic standoff as recently as 2023.
'I think it is fair to say that we never had as good a relationship as we have right now. Starting at the highest level, the chemistry between our two Prime Ministers is excellent,' Cooter said.
Largest-Ever Canadian Trade Delegation Headed to India
Canadian Trade Minister Maninder Sidhu is set to visit India next week, leading a delegation of 300 Canadian business representatives — described by Cooter as the largest trade delegation Canada has ever dispatched anywhere, and certainly to India. The delegation will spend a week visiting several cities in southern India, underlining the commercial dimension of the diplomatic reset.
Cooter also noted that at least six other Canadian ministers had visited India over the past year, and that a defence-related visit is expected in the near future. Canada's National Security Advisor had recently travelled to New Delhi for discussions with his Indian counterpart.
Free Trade Agreement in Sight for December
Perhaps the most consequential development flagged by the High Commissioner is the prospect of a Free Trade Agreement (FTA) between India and Canada, potentially to be signed during Modi's expected visit to Canada in early December 2026. Cooter acknowledged the pace was extraordinary, noting that formal negotiations only began in March 2026 — the same month Carney visited India. 'Which if we can do it, it will happen at light speed, because we only really began to negotiate this in March of this year,' he said.
This comes amid a broader recalibration of India's western partnerships, with External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar and Foreign Minister Anand having met 10 times over the past year — a diplomatic cadence that reflects how urgently both sides have sought to rebuild trust after the 2023 fallout over the Hardeep Singh Nijjar killing allegations. Whether the FTA timeline holds will depend on bridging gaps on agricultural market access and immigration, areas where the two sides have historically diverged.
Point of View
The relationship was in free fall over allegations Canada will not walk back; today, both sides are racing to finalise an FTA in under nine months of negotiation — a timeline that strains credibility. The real question is whether the political optics of a summit-level signing in December can paper over the structural gaps — agriculture, dairy, mobility — that have blocked an India-Canada deal for over a decade. If the FTA falls short of a full agreement, the December visit risks becoming a high-profile rerun of past near-misses. The 300-member trade delegation is a genuine signal of intent, but intent has never been Canada's problem in India; it has always been delivery.
NationPress
13 Oct 2026
Frequently Asked Questions
What did Modi and Carney discuss in their phone call on 13 October 2026?
Prime Minister Modi and Canadian PM Carney agreed to build on the positive momentum in India-Canada ties and advance concrete outcomes across trade, energy, technology, security, and people-to-people connections. Modi described the conversation as 'warm and productive' in a post on X.
Is India and Canada close to signing a Free Trade Agreement?
Yes, a Free Trade Agreement could be signed during PM Modi's expected visit to Canada in early December 2026. Formal negotiations only began in March 2026, making the timeline exceptionally fast by any standard.
Why is the Canadian trade delegation visit significant?
Canadian Trade Minister Maninder Sidhu will lead a delegation of 300 Canadian business representatives to India next week — the largest trade delegation Canada has ever sent to any country. The delegation will visit multiple cities in southern India over a week.
How has the India-Canada relationship changed in the past year?
The relationship has undergone a significant reset after a period of severe tensions in 2023. The two prime ministers have met four times in just over a year, their foreign ministers have held 10 meetings, and both sides have activated dialogues on energy, migration, and defence.
Who is the Canadian High Commissioner to India and what did he say?
Christopher Cooter is Canada's High Commissioner to India. He stated that the two nations have never had as good a relationship as they do right now, citing the strong personal chemistry between Modi and Carney and the high frequency of ministerial exchanges.
