OTTAWA — Prime Minister Mark Carney is heading to Germany to construct out protection and power ties, a transfer designed to buffer Canada’s economic system in opposition to the tariff threats posed by U.S. President Donald Trump.
“There’s a broad vary of areas, from crucial minerals to power and protection and safety, the place we’re intensifying our discussions with Germany,” Carney instructed reporters Friday on Parliament Hill.
He mentioned he’ll be accompanied by senior members of his Cupboard answerable for protection, commerce and business to bolster financial and safety cooperation.
The prime minister has mentioned Trump’s commerce agenda presents Ottawa with no selection however to construct new alliances.
“Canada have to be wanting elsewhere to develop our commerce, to construct our economic system and to guard our sovereignty,” the prime minister mentioned earlier this 12 months. “Canada is able to take a management function in constructing a coalition of like-minded international locations.”
To that finish, Carney’s authorities has been on a full-court press in Europe. This week, Trade Minister Mélanie Joly and International Affairs Minister Anita Anand have been in Scandinavia. Joly was in Sweden and Finland, whereas Anand met with Canada’s Nordic 5 NATO allies in Finland.
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz will welcome Carney in Berlin Tuesday morning.
Canadian Protection Minister David McGuinty is scheduled to satisfy along with his counterpart, Protection Minister Boris Pistorius.
Pure Assets Minister Tim Hodgson will do the rounds in Berlin, assembly with CEOs and executives from power, manufacturing and protection firms. He’ll additionally ship a speech to a enterprise crowd on the Canadian embassy.
“It’s actually a commerce mission targeted on power and demanding minerals,” mentioned a authorities official with data of Hodgson’s plans, and who was granted anonymity to talk about them.
Germany is “one of many precedence markets” within the EU as a result of it’s the continent’s largest economic system, the official famous.
Germany is curious about Canada’s uncommon earth minerals to assist clear power know-how and electrical automobiles. It additionally must energy its buildout of army {hardware} as a NATO member striving to satisfy the alliance’s new 5 % of GDP spending goal, mentioned the official. Germany remains to be weaning itself off Russian gasoline.
Hodgson can even be following up on the 2022 Canada-Germany Hydrogen Alliance that set the bold objective of starting transatlantic deliveries this 12 months. “We’ve been working very onerous with them for the final a number of years on a transatlantic hydrogen hall,” the official mentioned, however added no additional particulars.
Germany additionally desires to safe new sources of crucial minerals to counter China’s domination and weaponization of the worldwide market.
“Canada has so much to convey to the world stage, however that additionally requires catalyzing funding,” the official mentioned. “We’re open to German funding in Canadian tasks, if these will assist get tasks off the bottom.”
Carney mentioned he appeared ahead to speaking to Merz after internet hosting him on the G7 in Alberta earlier this 12 months, constructing on Canada’s bigger commerce take care of the European Union.
Ukraine can even be on their agenda, as it’s in all conversations Carney is having with international leaders nowadays, together with on what Canada’s future function is perhaps.
“I’ve had conversations about this, together with with President Trump, in the previous couple of weeks. We’re making progress,” he mentioned, calling it a “delicate” query.
Trump mentioned Friday that he desires “to be excellent” to Canada. “I like Carney so much,” he mentioned within the Oval Workplace. “I believe he’s a very good individual.”