Prime Minister Mark Carney will travel to France, Ireland, and the G7 Leaders’ Summit as Canada seeks deeper partnerships in trade, defense, AI, and critical minerals amid growing geopolitical uncertainty.
Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney will travel to France, Ireland, and the G7 Leaders’ Summit from June 11–17 as Ottawa continues its push to diversify trade, strengthen security ties, and position Canada as a leader in emerging technologies.
In Paris, Carney is expected to meet French President Emmanuel Macron to advance cooperation in defence, aerospace, critical minerals, artificial intelligence, and quantum technologies. The visit will also focus on attracting investment and expanding commercial partnerships between the two countries.
The Prime Minister will then travel to Ireland for the first bilateral visit by a Canadian prime minister in nearly a decade. Meetings with Taoiseach Micheál Martin and President Catherine Connolly will focus on trade, digital innovation, pharmaceuticals, agri-food, climate cooperation, and people-to-people ties.
Carney will conclude the trip at the 2026 G7 Leaders’ Summit in Évian, France, where leaders are expected to discuss economic security, energy, technology, and geopolitical challenges. Ottawa says Canada will highlight its role as a reliable partner in clean energy, AI, and quantum development.
The trip reflects a broader Canadian strategy to reduce economic dependence on any single partner and deepen ties with Europe and other like-minded democracies amid growing global uncertainty.
“Ireland and France are two of Canada’s closest and longest-standing partners,” Carney said. “In an increasingly uncertain world, we are deepening these ties – and those across the G7 – to build greater certainty, security, and prosperity.”
This trip is about more than diplomacy. Canada is positioning itself as a bridge between North America and Europe while investing in the industries likely to define future economic and security competition for decades: artificial intelligence, quantum technologies, critical minerals, and defense. The G7 summit will provide an early test of how aligned Western partners remain on these priorities. Trump is also expected to attend. Having covered previous G7 summits in person, one recurring challenge is that his presence often redirects both the conversation and media attention toward issues of his choosing, potentially complicating efforts to maintain focus on the summit’s broader agenda.
