Prime Minister Justin Trudeau on Monday said Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s re-election to a third term in the country’s general election opens up an opportunity to build a new relationship with India.
“Now that he’s out of the running, I think we have an opportunity to address some very serious issues, including national security, the safety of Canadians and the rule of law,” Trudeau told CBC News host David Cochrane. Power and politics.
Trudeau also noted that he met briefly with Modi on the sidelines of the G7 summit in Italy last week, tweeting a photo of the meeting, in which the two men looked serious and shaking hands.
“One of the really great things about the summit is the opportunity to have direct dialogue with a wide range of leaders on a range of issues,” Trudeau said. “With India in particular, we have tremendous people-to-people ties, we have very significant economic ties, and we agree on a lot of the big issues that we need to address as democracies and as a global community.”
It was not clear before the summit whether the two leaders would avoid each other, given tensions over the killing of Canadian Sikh activist Hardeep Singh Nijjar in June last year, which Trudeau blamed on the Indian government.
Tuesday marks the first anniversary of Nijjar’s death, and his supporters plan to hold a mock trial of Modi outside the Indian Consulate in Vancouver.
India frequently protests provocations by Sikh Khalistani (separatists) outside its diplomatic missions in Canada, the UK and other countries.
India lifted the ban on issuing tourist visas to Canadians following the Niger conflict, but Canada continues to operate with a significantly reduced diplomatic presence in India after the Modi government ordered the departure of 41 of Canada’s 62 diplomats in India.
This weekend, Indian drug trafficker Nikhil Gupta was extradited from Prague to the United States. U.S. prosecutors have accused him of acting as a middleman for Indian officials seeking to hire hit men to kill opponents of the Indian government in New York City.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau spoke with CBC’s Power & Politics host David Cochrane about his recent meeting with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi at the G7 summit in Italy. It was the first time the two leaders had met since Trudeau publicly accused the Indian government of involvement in the murder of Sikh activist Hardeep Singh Nijjar in Surrey, British Columbia.
The target of the murder plot was Gurpatwant Singh Panun, a US and Canadian national who was a close associate of Nijjar and leader of the Sikhs for Justice group.
Modi’s government has not denied that Indian officials were involved in the murder plot but has said it was a corrupt operation and that India is currently investigating.
U.S. prosecutors say Gupta was offered money and lenient punishment on drug charges in return for his role in the conspiracy. He has pleaded not guilty.
On Monday, five U.S. senators US Secretary of State Antony Blinken cited the Pannun and Nijar incidents and urged Washington not to accept the foul play theory.
Senators Jeffrey Merkley, Chris Van Hollen, Tim Kaine, Bernie Sanders and Ron Wyden, all Democrats, said the US “must match words with actions to hold accountable Indian officials involved in the conspiracy and send a clear message that there are consequences for such actions.”
Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau met with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi on the sidelines of the G7 summit in Italy for the first time since Canada publicly accused the Indian government of involvement in the assassination of Hardeep Singh Nijjar.
