Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his Canadian counterpart Mark Carney have agreed to pursue "constructive" steps to restore stability in India-Canada ties including the early return of envoys to each other's capitals, signalling their intent to repair the strained relations.

Modi and Carney held bilateral talks on Tuesday on the sidelines of the G7 summit in Kananaskis focusing on resetting the bilateral ties that plummeted to an all-time low following a diplomatic spat over the killing of a Khalistani separatist.

The two prime ministers also underscored the importance of restarting senior ministerial as well as working-level engagements across various domains to "rebuild trust" and "bring momentum" to the relationship, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said.

The two leaders reaffirmed the importance of India-Canada ties, based on shared democratic values, respect for the rule of law and commitment to upholding the "principles of sovereignty and territorial integrity", it said.

The statement assumes significance as India has been pressing Canada to not allow pro-Khalistani elements to carry out anti-India activities.

The two leaders underlined the importance of restarting the stalled negotiations on the early progress trade agreement (EPTA), with a view to paving the way for a comprehensive economic partnership agreement (CEPA).

In a social media post, Modi said India and Canada are connected by a "strong belief in democracy, freedom and rule of law" and that he and Carney are looking forward to working closely to add momentum to the India-Canada friendship.

The MEA said the two prime ministers underlined the need to pursue a "constructive and balanced" partnership "grounded in mutual respect for concerns and sensitivities, strong people-to-people ties, and growing economic complementarities." "In this regard, both sides agreed to take calibrated and constructive steps to restore stability in the relationship, beginning with the early return of high commissioners to each other’s capitals," it said.

The MEA said the meeting provided an opportunity for both sides to hold "frank and forward-looking" discussions on the state of India-Canada relations and the way ahead.

It was the first in-person interaction between the two leaders since Carney became prime minister following the general elections in Canada.

The India-Canada relations hit rock bottom following then Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's allegations in 2023 of a potential Indian link to the killing of pro-Khalistan separatist Hardeep Singh Nijjar.

In October last year, India recalled its high commissioner and five other diplomats after Ottawa attempted to link them to the Nijjar case. India also expelled an equal number of Canadian diplomats.

However, Liberal Party leader Carney's victory in the parliamentary election in April triggered hopes for reset of the relationship.

The MEA said Modi and Carney discussed opportunities for future collaboration in areas such as clean energy, digital transformation, artificial intelligence, food security, critical minerals, higher education, mobility, and supply chain resilience.

"They reaffirmed their shared interest in promoting a free and open Indo-Pacific. The leaders also discussed the importance of restarting the stalled negotiations on the Early Progress Trade Agreement, with a view to paving the way for a Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement.," it said.

"They agreed to task their respective officials to engage further in this regard," it said.

Both leaders acknowledged the important progress made at the G7 Summit and the shared willingness to work constructively together on global priorities such as climate action, inclusive growth, and sustainable development.

The leaders underlined the deep people-to-people connections between the two countries and agreed to leverage this living bridge to the benefit of both countries, the MEA said.

The leaders agreed to stay in touch and looked forward to meeting each other again at the earliest opportunity, it said. PTI MPB ZH ZH

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