Security, minerals top of agenda in Canadian PM’s visit
Anthony Albanese hopes to deepen security and defense ties with Canadian leader Mark Carney, who is visiting Australia for the first time as prime minister.
Mr Carney’s three-day trip to Australia follows a series of talks between the two leaders, who have met nine times, most recently on the sidelines of the G20 summit in South Africa in November.
The Canadian leader will land in Sydney on Tuesday and travel to Canberra to speak at Parliament House on Thursday.
Mr Carney will give a keynote speech at the Lowy Institute in Sydney on Wednesday night about changes in the global order and the opportunities they present for middle powers.
can speak on themes touched upon in the widely publicized World Economic Forum speech in January; It could call on middle powers to work together to build a more cooperative, resilient world.
In that speech, Mr Carney sought to go beyond US President Donald Trump’s claims about Greenland and called on smaller countries to band together to avoid being overwhelmed by bigger players.
“Middle powers must act together because if you are not at the table, you are on the menu,” he told the forum.
Mr Albanese said the visit would be an opportunity to further strengthen Australia and Canada’s cooperation on investment, economic security and critical minerals.
“I am pleased to welcome my friend Prime Minister Carney to Australia and look forward to his speech to the Australian Parliament,” he said in a statement.
“Canada is one of Australia’s closest friends, built on generations of trust with a shared commitment to promoting stability in the Indo-Pacific and beyond. “As our countries face new challenges and opportunities, we must deepen our cooperation with our partners to support our national interests.”
Defense and intelligence cooperation is also expected to come to the fore; both countries have long been partners through the Five Eyes network.
Five Eyes is an intelligence-sharing alliance consisting of Australia, Canada, New Zealand, the United Kingdom and the United States.
