Prime Minister Mark Carney is expected to make defence spending announcements as well as focus on deepening trade ties during the course of his trip to Poland, Germany and Latvia, according to Canadian government officials.
The officials, briefing reporters ahead of Carney’s European trip, said the defence announcements would not be detailed in terms of specific contracts or companies. Canada has committed to increasing defence spending to reach NATO’s 2 per cent of GDP target.
“Our relationships in Europe are especially important in a context where our shared values are increasingly being challenged,” said one official, speaking on a not-for-attribution basis and also mentioning the need for “defence and security arrangements commensurate to a more dangerous world.”
Carney left Ottawa early Saturday morning, and is expected to meet a slew of politicians and business leaders before he returns on Wednesday.
Against the backdrop of a trade war with the United States, Carney will work to diversify trade and boost European partnerships, particularly around energy, critical minerals and defence.
Speaking in Ottawa Friday, Carney said conversations on those topics are “intensifying” with Germany, noting “many opportunities,” and he is “very much looking forward” to his meeting with German Chancellor Friedrich Merz.
“Canada has a good partnership with Germany. It’s been built up over the years, but it can be much, much better. And I’m confident that with this chancellor and the focus of our government, that it will,” Carney said.
Experts believe Germany’s goals of moving away from Russian gas and ramping up its battery electric vehicle industry present opportunities for Canada.
Volkswagen is currently building what it bills as the “Largest. Gigafactory. Ever.” in St. Thomas, Ont., to make electric vehicle batteries.
In Berlin, the prime minister will also host a roundtable with senior business leaders, both Canadian and German. That includes CEOs of “major German firms that represent potential buyers and investors in critical minerals, infrastructure projects in Canada,” although officials would not share which firms.
The roundtable will focus on “securing resilient supply chains” in energy and natural resources; particularly, critical minerals.
Defence Minister David McGuinty was on board the prime minister’s plane, while Natural Resources Minister Tim Hodgson and Industry Minister Melanie Joly will join him in Europe.
The prime minister is expected to meet Canadian troops both in Warsaw and on a visit to a Latvian base.
About 2,000 Canadian soldiers are stationed in Latvia for the Canadian-led NATO mission Operation REASSURANCE, which represents Canada’s largest military contribution to the trans-Atlantic alliance.
