Canada and Türkiye Set Nov. 30 Trade Talks as Carney Visit Yields New Cooperation Deals

Canada and Türkiye will hold the first formal round of free trade negotiations in Ankara from Nov. 30 to Dec. 4, the Prime Minister’s Office said Friday, a day after Prime Minister Mark Carney met Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan.

The two leaders launched a strategic partnership on Thursday with a three year action plan covering trade and investment, defence and security, energy and ties between their people. No free trade agreement has been concluded.

The Prime Minister’s Office said the free trade negotiations were launched around the NATO summit in Ankara in July and that Canadian public consultations concluded in September.

Trade figures
Two way merchandise trade between the countries reached $4.3 billion in 2025, the Prime Minister’s Office said. Canadian exports were $1.1 billion and imports from Türkiye were $3.2 billion. The office said bilateral trade has grown almost 50 per cent since 2020.

Financing, missions and flights
Export Development Canada and Türk Eximbank signed a memorandum of understanding to cooperate on projects in third countries. Carney announced a Canadian trade mission to Türkiye in 2027, led by the Minister of International Trade. In Istanbul, he met business leaders and investors focused on energy, mining, aerospace and defence, according to the Prime Minister’s Office. Foreign Affairs Minister Anita Anand and Energy and Natural Resources Minister Tim Hodgson accompanied him.

The expanded air transport agreement raises weekly passenger combination flights from 12 to as many as 21 for each country and removes the weekly limit on all cargo flights, the Prime Minister’s Office said. Those are permitted levels, not scheduled flights. The leaders’ joint statement lists ratification of the agreement as still to come.

Energy and defence
A new memorandum on defence sector partnerships is intended to link Canadian and Turkish companies. It follows a Statement of Intent on Defence Cooperation signed in July. A joint statement also covers cooperation on liquefied natural gas, civil nuclear energy, renewable energy and critical minerals.

Human rights
Carney said Canadian officials raised LGBTQ+ rights with their Turkish counterparts, Reuters reported on Friday. The Prime Minister’s Office has said Anand raised human rights with her Turkish counterpart. Amnesty International urged Carney before the visit to raise what it described as a deepening human rights crisis in Türkiye, The Canadian Press reported.