By Mansour Al-Maswari
Key Takeaways:
- Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan launched a strategic partnership in Ankara on Thursday, the first bilateral visit to Turkey by a Canadian prime minister, with agreements covering defense, air transport, and energy.
- The leaders set a goal of raising annual trade from around $3 billion to $5 billion and eventually $10 billion, launched the first round of free-trade negotiations, and adopted a three-year action plan spanning trade, defense, energy, and people-to-people ties.
- The partnership aligns with Carney’s effort to diversify Canada’s trading relationships beyond the United States; bilateral merchandise trade reached approximately $4.3 billion in 2025.
(Albawaba) — Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan launched a strategic partnership in Ankara on Thursday, signing agreements to expand cooperation in defense, air transport and energy.
The meeting marked the first bilateral visit to Turkey by a Canadian prime minister. The two leaders met at the Presidential Complex and agreed to deepen cooperation across trade and investment, energy, defense and security, and people-to-people relations.
Erdogan described the agreement as the beginning of a new era in bilateral relations, setting a goal of increasing annual trade from around $3 billion to $5 billion and eventually $10 billion.
Carney stressed the importance of building stronger partnerships with trusted allies, saying countries could improve their resilience by combining their strengths rather than pursuing self-sufficiency alone.
The agreements include a memorandum of understanding on defence cooperation, an expanded air transport agreement to increase connectivity between the two countries, and commitments to strengthen cooperation in the energy sector. The two governments also launched the first round of negotiations toward a comprehensive free trade agreement.
The partnership is built around a three-year action plan covering trade and investment, defence and security, energy, and people-to-people ties. Energy cooperation is expected to explore opportunities in areas including natural gas, nuclear technology and critical minerals.
Haluk Görgün, head of Turkey’s Defence Industries Authority, said the defence memorandum reflected both countries’ commitment to expanding cooperation as NATO allies. He also highlighted the growing international role of Turkey’s defence industry.
The visit comes as Carney seeks to diversify Canada’s trading relationships and reduce its reliance on the United States amid trade tensions and tariffs introduced under US President Donald Trump. Ottawa has made expanding international partnerships a central part of its economic strategy, particularly with countries in the Middle East and South Asia, as well as China.
The two countries’ merchandise trade reached approximately $4.3 billion in 2025, according to the Canadian government. Both are members of NATO and the G20, providing a foundation for closer cooperation on economic and security issues.
