Türkiye, Canada seek strategic ties ahead of NATO summit

OTTAWA

Türkiye and Canada are working to elevate bilateral ties to a strategic level, Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan has said after talks with his Canadian counterpart Anita Anand in Ottawa.

Speaking at a joint news conference, Fidan said the two NATO allies had long-underused potential in trade, defense, energy and diplomacy.

“There are major areas of cooperation between Türkiye and Canada that have not been fully realized for years,” Fidan said.

He said the two countries had not advanced cooperation to the desired level despite being major NATO allies.

Fidan said Türkiye will host Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney, Anand and Defense Minister David McGuinty at the NATO summit in Ankara on July 7-8, adding that Carney is also expected to visit Türkiye soon.

The Ankara summit will be “historic,” Fidan said, noting that decisions by NATO members would be important both for the future of the alliance and the region.

Anand said the summit was “highly anticipated” because of its focus on the defense industry and cooperation among NATO allies on supply chains and interoperability.

“We will be together not only to grow our bilateral relationship but our relationship on defense and security matters as well,” she said.

The two ministers discussed what Anand described as four strategic pillars of the relationship: trade and investment, energy and critical minerals, defense and security, and people-to-people ties.

Fidan said preliminary talks toward a Türkiye-Canada Free Trade Agreement had begun and that both sides wanted to move the process forward.

Anand said two-way trade reached $4.3 billion last year and that a trade deal could create new opportunities for both economies.

Energy cooperation was also high on the agenda after Fidan and Anand visited the Darlington Nuclear Generating Station in Ontario.

Fidan said Türkiye was closely examining Canada’s capabilities in conventional nuclear power and small modular reactors, as Ankara continues work on expanding its nuclear energy capacity.

Anand said Canada saw significant opportunities to expand cooperation with Türkiye in nuclear technology, energy security and clean energy development.

The ministers also discussed cooperation in critical minerals, liquefied natural gas and defense industry projects.

On regional issues, Fidan said Türkiye welcomed the U.S.-Iran ceasefire and would continue to contribute to diplomatic efforts, while stressing the importance of uninterrupted navigation through the Strait of Hormuz.

He also said Türkiye was not “taking its eyes off Gaza,” accusing Israel of obstructing humanitarian aid deliveries.

Fidan reiterated Ankara’s readiness to host renewed peace talks between Russia and Ukraine, saying Türkiye wanted the war to end through dialogue and in line with international law.