Modi, Carney reboot ties with uranium pact, eye $50 bn trade

New Delhi: India and Canada on Monday sealed key pacts on supplies of uranium and critical minerals and vowed to soon conclude a comprehensive economic partnership agreement, with Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his Canadian counterpart Mark Carney finalising a new framework to shore up ties, including taking bilateral annual trade to USD 50 billion by 2030.

In their wide-ranging talks, the two leaders agreed to ramp up cooperation in defence, critical technologies, civil nuclear energy, small and modular nuclear reactors, education and renewable energy. Modi said relations between the two countries are now filled with new energy, mutual trust and positivity.

Canada will support India’s civil nuclear energy sector under a USD 2.6 billion long-term uranium supply agreement. The two sides also signed an MoU on critical minerals to strengthen resilient supply chains, with Canada holding significant reserves of critical and rare earth minerals. Modi and Carney also discussed the security situation in West Asia, with the prime minister reiterating that India supports resolution of all conflicts through dialogue and diplomacy and will continue working with partners to ensure the safety of Indian citizens in the region.

The decision to expand trade ties comes amid Canada’s increasingly frosty economic relations with the Trump administration and ongoing efforts to reset bilateral ties strained after a diplomatic row in 2023. “Our goal is to reach USD 50 billion in trade by 2030. We have decided to finalise the Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement soon,” Modi said, noting that Canadian pension funds have invested USD 100 billion in India.