"Direction looks positive": India's Acting High Commissioner in Canada ahead of talks between PM Modi, Carney

Calgary [Canada], June 16 (ANI): India's Acting High Commissioner to Canada, Chinmoy Naik, has expressed optimism over discussions set to be held between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his Canadian counterpart Mark Carney on the sidelines of the G7 Summit in Alberta.
Speaking to ANI, Naik stated that PM Modi has been invited to G7 Summit by Carney and noted that India will be participating in the G7 Summit as a guest country for the sixth time. He stated that India at the G7 Summit will speak about energy security, innovation, new technologies like AI.
On PM Modi's visit to G7 Summit, he said, "As your are aware that honourable Prime Minister of India has been invited to attend the G7 2025 Summit as an outreach guest country by the honorable Prime Minister of Canada Mark Carney. This is the sixth consecutive time India is coming to G7 as a guest country which speaks for India's importance on the world stage today. In this particular G7, India will be speaking about energy security, innovation, new technologies like AI, Quantum etc, which are contemporary topics that will effect all of us and our views will will definitely get noticed, I am sure."
"In addition to that, there will be bilaterals on the sidelines. As you know, the G7 countries and also some other rich countries are also here in Calgary and there will be interactions on that front as well. That also includes interaction with meeting with Honourable Mark Carney, Prime Minister of Canada as well," the Indian envoy said.
Prime Minister will travel to Canada's Kananaskis to attend the G7 Summit on June 16-17. This will be PM Modi's sixth consecutive participation in the G7 Summit.
Asked about his expectation regarding bilateral ties following the meeting between PM Modi and Carney, Naik said, "At this point, I'll just say that honourable Prime Minister tweeted the moment Prime Minister Mark Carney was elected. So that was a good signal. And now we are seeing the visit happening at his invitation. I think those hold significance in themselves. We will see how the discussion goes and what comes out of it. I would say the direction looks positive. But as I said, around this visit and around this meeting, you can already see so much of enthusiasm and positivity, which is what should be noted."
He stated that Indian diaspora in Canada is very excited for PM Modi's visit and that the Indian High Commission is receiving feedback from Indo-Canadians ever since PM Modi's visit to Canada was announced.
When asked about Indian community's reaction to PM Modi's visit, he said, "As soon as the visit was announced, we have been getting feedback from all over the Indo-Canadian community across Canada. As you know, there's 1.8 million Indo-Canadian diaspora here and they are excited, they are full of energy and they have been expressing themselves in various forms. I would invite you to see our social media handles and see for yourself."
"From Cyprus, I will travel to Kananaskis, Canada to attend the G7 Summit at the invitation of Prime Minister Mark Carney. The Summit will provide space for exchange of views on pressing global issues and the priorities of the Global South. I also look forward to engaging with leaders from partner countries," he said.
PM Modi arrived in Cyprus on Sunday, marking the beginning of his three-nation official visit to Cyprus, Canada, and Croatia. After concluding his visit to Croatia, PM Modi will travel to Canada to attend G7 Summit.
In his statement before departing for his three-nation visit, PM Modi had stated, "From Cyprus, I will travel to Kananaskis, Canada to attend the G7 Summit at the invitation of Prime Minister HE Mark Carney. The Summit will provide space for exchange of views on pressing global issues and the priorities of the Global South. I also look forward to engaging with leaders from partner countries," he said.
The G7 Summit is an international forum held annually for the leaders of the G7 member states of the United States, the United Kingdom, France, Germany, Japan, Italy, and Canada and the European Union (EU).
PM Modi's visit to Canada comes after a period of strained relations between the two countries, triggered by Canadian allegations that Indian agents were involved in the killing of NIA-designated terrorist Hardeep Singh Nijjar outside gurdwara in Canada in 2023.
India strongly rejected the allegations and both nations expelled senior diplomats in a tit-for-tat escalation. India has expressed concern about extremism and anti-India activities in Canada and has asked Canadian authorities to take action against it. (ANI)