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Canada's Prime Minister's Office said the first round of negotiations on a comprehensive free trade agreement with Turkey will take place in Ankara from Nov. 30 to Dec. 4, and that Ottawa will send a trade mission to Turkey in 2027.

The announcement followed Prime Minister Mark Carney's visit to Ankara and Istanbul, described as the first bilateral prime ministerial visit from Canada to Turkey, during which Carney and President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan launched a Canada-Turkey Strategic Partnership.

Defence, energy and aviation agreements

The statement stressed that the two countries are strengthening defence cooperation as NATO allies, and said a new memorandum of understanding on defence industry partnerships was signed between Canada and Turkey.

In energy, the two sides signed a joint declaration to strengthen cooperation on liquefied natural gas (LNG), civil nuclear energy, renewable energy and critical minerals. An expanded Air Transport Agreement raised the number of weekly passenger flights between the two countries from 12 to 21 and provided unlimited opportunities for cargo flights.

Key takeaways

• The first round of Canada-Turkey free trade agreement negotiations will be held in Ankara from Nov. 30 to Dec. 4.
• Carney and Erdoğan launched a Canada-Turkey Strategic Partnership backed by a three-year action plan.
• Canada will send a trade mission to Turkey in 2027, led by the Minister of International Trade.
• Bilateral trade has risen by about 50% since 2020, and weekly passenger flights were raised from 12 to 21.