After a stretched diplomatic row with India concerning the killing of pro-Khalistani leader Hardeep Singh Nijjar in Canada in June last year, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau on Tuesday said he sees an "opportunity" to engage with the new Indian government, including on economic ties and national security.
Trudeau's remarks on the possibility of reviving the diplomatic ties with India came after his meeting with Prime Minister Narendra Modi at the G7 Summit in Italy.
In a first face-to-face meeting since the unfolding of the India-Canada diplomatic row last year, PM Modi interacted with Justin Trudeau briefly on the sidelines of the G7 Summit in Apulia, Italy.
In an explosive allegation in September last year, Trudeau insinuated serious involvement of Indian agents in the killing of Hardeep Singh Nijjar. However, India had strongly rejected the allegations.
What did PM Trudeau say?
Answering questions on the bilateral meetings, Trudeau said one of the really good things about the G7 Summit is that "you get an opportunity to engage directly with a huge range of different leaders with whom there are various issues and certainly with India, there are massive people to people ties, they're really important economic ties."
"There's alignment on a number of big issues that we need to work on as, as democracies as a global community. But now that he (Modi) is through his election, I think there is an opportunity for us to engage, including on some very serious issues around national security and keeping Canadians safe and the rule of law that we will be engaging," the Canadian Prime Minister was quoted as saying by CBC News.
