Canada’s Prime Minister, Mark Carney, and Turkey’s president, Recep Tayip Erdogan, have agreed to establish relations between the two countries at the level of a strategic partnership, with the goal of expanding economic, energy and defence co-operation.
The agreement was disclosed during a Canadian prime minister’s first bilateral visit to Turkey, where both leaders held meetings in Ankara. The partnership will be based on four key areas: trade and investment, defence and security, energy and relations among citizens.
During the ceremony, representatives of the two countries signed co-operation agreements in the field of energy, defence and air transport.
Carney said the partnership will be accompanied by a three-year action plan aimed at creating new opportunities for businesses and employees of the two countries.
We have thrown seeds for something new: a strategic partnership that will create new opportunities for our employees and businesses, as well as more security and well-being for both our peoples, Carney said.
Erdogan, meanwhile, announced that the two countries are aiming to increase the volume of bilateral trade initially to five billion dollars and then to $10 billion, from about three billion dollars currently.
The two countries’ negotiators are expected to meet next month in Ankara to start talks on a free trade agreement. Co-operation is also expected to expand into nuclear energy, critical minerals, and liquid natural gas.
Carney’s visit comes at a time when Canada is trying to diversify its trade partners and reduce dependence on the American market, in a period of commercial tension with President Donald Trump’s administration.
Although the United States remains the main destination of Canadian exports, Ottawa has stepped up efforts to expand trade with other countries. Over the past five years, trade between Canada and Turkey has increased by nearly 50 percent.
On the other hand, Turkey aims to attract new investments in the defence industry, nuclear energy and mining sector, viewing co-operation with Canada as an opportunity to expand its economic and industrial capacities.
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