Mark Carney is all set to take over as the Prime Minister of Canada by replacing Justin Trudeau, whose rule has been marked by controversy. Trudeau had become extremely unpopular, and thanks to a major internal rift, he offered to step down.
Carney won a landslide victory in a Liberal Party leadership vote. During Trudeau’s rule, relations with India had nosedived. The outgoing Prime Minister of Canada had to please his Khalistan voter base and made baseless allegations against India, as a result of which relations had touched an all-time low.
It would be interesting to see how Carney would handle relations with India once he takes over office.
Carney and India
Carney has vowed to reset ties with India. While running for the top post, Carney said he would rebuild relations with India if voted to power. He said that Canada would look to diversify trading relationships with like-minded countries such as India under him.
He also said that there are opportunities to rebuild relations with India. “There needs to be a shared sense of values around that commercial relationship and if I’m Prime Minister, I look forward to the opportunity to build that,” Carney said.
New Delhi is also looking at this development positively. Working with Trudeau had become very uncomfortable after he made a host of baseless allegations. He accused India of being involved in the murder of Khalistan terrorist Hardeep Singh Nijjar on Canadian soil. He even accused the bureaucracy of meddling in Canada’s internal affairs. However, Trudeau had to take back his words after an inquiry within Canada found that India had no role in meddling with the country’s internal affairs.
Trudeau had also made matters worse by dragging the Prime Minister of India, Home Minister and National Security Advisor into a mess thanks to his ill-informed attitude.
The Khalistan movement
While Carney said he would reset ties with India, one big thorn would be the Khalistan issue. Whether it is Trudeau or any other leader, none have acknowledged the issue. Canada, for years, has continued giving space to Khalistan elements.
India has repeatedly sought action against these elements and has even put in several extradition requests.
Even as Carney readies himself to reset ties with New Delhi, it is to be seen if he would act on the Khalistan issue. Officials tell the Organiser that New Delhi would be glad to reset ties. It is always good to have good ties with countries. However, New Delhi will continue to raise the Khalistan issue and hopes that Carney will fare better than Trudeau on this issue.
Canada watchers say that Carney may handle the issue better. Many in Canada are speaking out against the Khalistanis, who have become a threat to them. There have been instances when the Khalistani elements have told the Canadians to leave the country. These tensions have been simmering, and at such a delicate time, Carney would like to put the brakes on this movement.
Further, it is important for Carney to share good ties with as many countries due to the tensions with the United States over tariffs. Since Donald Trump took over, he has repeatedly targeted Canada on tariffs. Canada has, on many occasions, told Trump that its country would suffer a lot if tariffs were imposed at such high levels. However, Trump has not backed down.
More about Mark Carney
Mark Carney (59) is a highly respected economist and a former central banker. He is known for the work he has done both at the Bank of Canada and the Bank of England. He was born on March 16, 1965 in Fort Smith in Canada. He earned a bachelor’s degree in economics from Harvard University in 1988 and later pursued his studies at Oxford University. Carney has also been an executive at Goldman Sachs.
The most interesting aspect would be his relationship with Donald Trump. Carney will have to take the mantle from Trudeau on dealing with Trump in the wake of the souring ties between the two countries. Trump has made his intentions clear that he would want Canada to be the 51st state of the United States.
In his acceptance speech, Carney said that Canada faced dark, dark days brought on by a country we can no longer trust. He said that there would be tit-for-tat tariffs on US imports until the Americans showed them respect.
“New threats demand new ideas and a new plan. He’s (Trump) attacking Canadian families, workers, and businesses, and we cannot let him succeed and we won’t. In trade as in hockey, Canada will win,” Carney said.
Carney had even once compared Trump to Lord Voldemort, the dark wizard who is Harry Potter’s enemy. These comments were made over Trump’s repeated remarks to annexe Canada. “When you think about what’s at stake in these ridiculous, insulting comments of the president, of what we could be, I view this as the sort of Voldemort of comment,” Carney said while adding that he would not bow down to a bully.
