India invites Canada PM to attend AI Impact Summit in New Delhi
That multilateral AI event will also allow Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the host of the summit, to hold bilateral discussions with the participating global leaders
Toronto: India has formally invited Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney to the AI Impact Summit it is hosting in New Delhi in February next year. If Carney attends the summit, it will be his first visit to India since he assumed charge as PM.
Three persons familiar with the matter confirmed the invitation has been sent to Ottawa. They expressed hope that Carney will accept the invitation since artificial intelligence is among the sectors his government is focused on and his Cabinet actually has a minister tasked with that portfolio.
The Canadian prime minister’s office has yet to confirm acceptance and the persons mentioned earlier cautioned that response could take a while.
However, there may be opportunities for the two PMs to meet this year. Depending on the participation of both PMs at the global events, those will be at the Asean summit hosted by Malaysia later this month, and the G20 leaders’ summit in South Africa in November.
That multilateral AI event will also allow Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the host of the summit, to hold bilateral discussions with the participating global leaders.
India and Canada commenced a gradual reset of their relationship this year after Carney replaced Justin Trudeau as Prime Minister in March. He held a breakthrough bilateral meeting with Modi on the margins of the G7 leaders’ summit in Kananaskis in June.
Canada’s Minister of Foreign Affairs Anita Anand will visit New Delhi and Mumbai in the coming week, and hold talks with External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar and other Indian leaders, on the steps to be taken to further ties.
There are also likely to be other meetings at the ministerial level during this year, though they have yet to be confirmed. Each bilateral engagement will be a step in the process towards resetting the relationship, which is still far from normal.
