In this image posted on Oct. 14, 2026, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar during a meeting with his Canadian counterpart Anita Anand, in New Delhi. | Photo Credit: Via PTI Photo

External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar met his Canadian counterpart Anita Anand here on Wednesday, with the two sides underscoring the importance of “sustaining the momentum” in high-level bilateral engagement and translating it into tangible outcomes.

The Canadian foreign ministry, in a readout, said Minister Anand highlighted the “importance that Canada places on India as a valuable partner, particularly at a time of geopolitical uncertainty”.

“The ministers discussed other geopolitical issues, including the Middle East conflict and the unjustified war in Ukraine,” the readout said.

The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA), in a statement, said they also appreciated the progress towards an “early conclusion” of negotiations on a Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA).

The Canadian foreign minister, who is on a working visit to India, on Wednesday also met Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who said they had a productive discussion on further strengthening India-Canada ties in trade, technology and energy.

During her meeting with Jaishankar in Delhi, the ministers underlined the importance of “sustaining the momentum in high-level engagement between the two countries and translating it into tangible outcomes”.

The meeting reaffirmed the commitment of both sides to pursuing a “constructive and forward-looking partnership” that delivers tangible benefits for the people of India and Canada, the MEA said.

CEPA talks and trade expansion in focus

During the meeting, the two ministers reviewed ongoing efforts to strengthen bilateral relations and advance cooperation across key areas of the India-Canada strategic partnership.

“They had detailed exchange of views on enhancing security and defence cooperation, as well as expanding energy cooperation,” the statement said.

They also discussed opportunities to deepen their economic partnership, expand bilateral trade and advance collaboration in education, science and technology, people-to-people ties and multilateral fora, it said.

They exchanged perspectives on regional and global developments of mutual interest.

Modi, after a telephonic conversation on Tuesday with his Canadian counterpart Mark Carney, said he had a “warm and productive” conversation with him, and both leaders agreed to build on the “positive momentum” in bilateral ties.

Later, a statement from Carney’s office said that the two prime ministers reaffirmed their commitment to conclude negotiations on a CEPA at the earliest opportunity, supporting efforts to double two-way trade by 2030.

MEA spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal, in response to a query during his bi-weekly media briefing, said the fifth round of negotiations happened in Ottawa, a week ago or so, and both sides remain committed to a mutually beneficial CEPA.

Both sides review progress on joint roadmap

The Canadian foreign ministry in its readout said the meeting between the two ministers in Delhi sought to “deepen bilateral relations”, discuss regional and global issues, and continue to advance Canada-India joint roadmap priorities.

“Minister Anand and Minister Jaishankar discussed the positive momentum in the renewed Canada-India Strategic Partnership, underpinned by sustained high-level engagement between the two countries over the last year,” the readout said.

They reviewed progress made since the launch of the joint roadmap during Minister Anand’s first visit to India a year ago and discussed ways to further advance roadmap priorities, including trade, energy, people-to-people ties and security and defence cooperation.

Security cooperation and upcoming engagements

They welcomed the recent bilateral security dialogue held in India at the national security adviser (NSA) level, where senior officials from both countries reviewed progress in bilateral security and law enforcement cooperation and committed to sustained engagement on security issues of mutual interest.

The ministers also welcomed efforts to “advance negotiations” for a CEPA and highlighted the Team Canada Trade Mission led by International Trade Minister Maninder Sidhu as a tangible example of growing economic partnership and expansion of bilateral trade.

They welcomed upcoming high-level engagements between the two countries to further deepen bilateral ties and agreed to remain in close contact, the readout said.

Published on October 15, 2026