Canada and Turkey launch free trade talks and strategic pact as Carney seeks to cut reliance on US

Canada and Turkey opened formal negotiations on a comprehensive bilateral free trade agreement on Thursday, October 22, as Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney met with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan in Ankara to accelerate economic diversification and deepen defense and energy integration between the two NATO allies.

What agreements anchor new Canada-Türkiye Strategic Partnership?

The bilateral summit—the first official visit by a Canadian prime minister to Turkey—resulted in the signing of the Canada-Türkiye Strategic Partnership, structured around a three-year action plan covering four core pillars: trade and investment, defense and security, energy and climate cooperation, and people-to-people connections.

Following delegation talks at the Presidential Complex, Erdogan announced that negotiating teams will convene in Ankara next month for the first formal round of trade talks, aiming to lift two-way commerce from its current $3 billion baseline to $5 billion, with a longer-term objective of $10 billion. Under the diplomatic framework, foreign ministers from both capitals will meet annually to review implementation.

The two governments also finalized an expanded bilateral air transport agreement that increases scheduled passenger flights between Canadian and Turkish cities from 12 to 21 weekly while eliminating restrictions on dedicated air cargo services. In the energy sector, ministerial working groups were established to advance collaboration across liquefied natural gas (LNG), civil nuclear development, and critical mineral extraction.

On defense, the leaders concluded an Agreement on Defence Industry Partnership to support joint manufacturing and aerospace development between Canadian and Turkish firms. The accord builds on Ottawa's earlier decision to lift arms export restrictions, facilitating integrated supply chains in drone optics and aerospace components.

"Our goal is not self-sufficiency; it is collective resilience," Carney said during a joint press appearance. "And that's why Canada is building deeper partnerships with reliable partners that create new opportunities for us both. And in Turkey, we have an exceptional partner." The leaders' joint communiqué also reaffirmed joint security consultations across the Euro-Atlantic theater, including stability in Ukraine, the South Caucasus, and the Middle East, with specific focus on Gaza.

Why is Canada diversifying its trade strategy, and what domestic concerns have emerged?

The Ankara summit highlights a concerted foreign policy realignment by the Carney administration, which assumed office in March 2025 and has prioritized shielding Canada's export-driven economy from trade disputes and tariff exposure in the United States. The Turkish engagement follows similar diplomatic and commercial re-engagements across non-traditional economic partners, including Saudi Arabia, India, and China, intended to insulate Canadian manufacturing and resource sectors from North American market volatility.

However, the rapid diplomatic realignment has drawn domestic political pushback in Ottawa. Human rights advocates have called on the federal government to ensure trade concessions do not compromise human rights advocacy, urging Ottawa to address civil liberties restrictions and administrative clampdowns targeting LGBTQ2S+ civil society organizations in Turkey. Concurrently, organizations representing Canada’s Armenian diaspora have expressed concern over deepened defense collaboration with Ankara, warning against transferring dual-use aerospace technologies.

Carney traveled to Istanbul on Friday to meet with Turkish corporate executives in the advanced manufacturing, renewable energy, and artificial intelligence sectors before wrapping up his two-day official mission.

According to reporting by Al Jazeera, BNN Bloomberg, and Global News, technical negotiating teams from Ottawa and Ankara will publish preliminary tariff schedules ahead of next month's ministerial talks in the Turkish capital.