Carney in Europe to Strengthen Trade, Security Ties With Poland, Germany, Latvia

Prime Minister Mark Carney arrived in Poland on Saturday, Aug. 23, and is scheduled to meet with political and business leaders over the next three days, starting Monday to strengthen economic and security ties with European allies.

Carney’s Europe trip will include stops in Warsaw, Poland; Berlin, Germany; and Riga, Latvia, from Aug. 25 to 27, according to a Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) news release on Aug. 23. During the trip, he will engage in a broad range of discussions, including trade, energy, critical minerals, and collective defence.

Natural Resources Minister Tim Hodgson, Defence Minister David McGuinty, and Industry Minister Mélanie Joly will join him on the trip, the prime minister said during an Aug. 22 press conference, where he also announced the removal of retaliatory tariffs on all U.S. goods covered under Canada’s free-trade agreement with the United States and Mexico, the USMCA.

The German portion of the trip was acknowledged by Carney during the press conference when a reporter asked why he was visiting Europe and what he hoped to accomplish. The prime minister replied that it is to “deepen our economic and security partnership with Germany.”

Germany is Canada’s sixth-largest merchandise trading partner, based on 2024 figures, with two-way trade reaching $30.5 billion that year.

“Canada has a good partnership with Germany, built up over the years, but it can be much, much better, and I’m confident that, with the chancellor and the focus of our government, that it will,” he said, referring to German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, whom he will meet in Berlin on Aug. 26.

Carney added that he is looking to expand opportunities under Canada’s trade pact with the European Union—the Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement, or CETA.

“There’s a broad range of areas, from critical minerals to energy and defence and security, where we are intensifying our discussions with Germany,” he said.

The PMO reiterated Carney’s intent on Aug. 23, stating in the news release that the prime minister will also meet with senior corporate leaders in Berlin to “encourage new investment opportunities and secure resilient supply chains in energy and natural resources—especially critical minerals.”

‘New Reality’

While in Poland on Aug. 25, Carney is expected to meet with his counterparts, Prime Minister Donald Tusk and President Karol Nawrocki, to advance the strategic partnership between the two countries centred on commerce, energy, and defence.

“To that end, the Prime Minister will meet with business leaders to promote new industrial partnerships in key sectors, including energy, defence, and aerospace,” the PMO said in its release, noting that Carney will also highlight Canada’s continued support for Ukraine.

Canada and Poland have been cooperating on the military training of members of the Armed Forces of Ukraine. The Department of National Defence (DND) notes that, since 2015, the Canadian Armed Forces (CAF) has trained over 45,000 Ukrainian troops through Operation Unifier. Since Russia launched its invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, much of that training has taken place in Poland.

Following his stops in Warsaw and Berlin, Carney is expected to meet Latvian Prime Minister Evika Siliņa in Riga on Aug. 27 to discuss ways to strengthen the bilateral relationship between the two countries and to further trade interests, including in the defence sector.

The PMO says the prime minister will also visit CAF members deployed in Latvia as part of Operation Reassurance—currently Canada’s largest international military mission—which contributes to NATO’s deterrence and defence measures in Central and Eastern Europe, particularly against Russian aggression.

About 1,900 CAF members are stationed in Latvia throughout the year in support of Operation Reassurance, according to DND’s website. The operation comprises personnel from over a dozen NATO countries.

Carney’s Europe trip builds on the work he began in June at the G7 Summit in Kananaskis, Alberta, and the EU-Canada Summit in Brussels, where he pledged additional support for Ukraine, announced further sanctions against Russia, and signed a defence and security pact with the EU.

At the Aug. 22 press conference, Carney said the “steady process of integration” of the Canadian and U.S. economies—starting with free-trade agreements dating back to the 1980s—is “now over” under the new U.S. approach.

“As a result, some of our historic strengths have become vulnerabilities,” the prime minister said. “We can and must adapt to this new reality. That means concentrating on trade, investment, and security partnerships that preserve our sovereignty.”

The Canadian Press contributed to this report.