Former Saskatchewan premier Brad Wall can repair relations with India, say premiers
OTTAWA — Alberta Premier Danielle Smith and Saskatchewan Premier Scott Moe agree that Moe’s predecessor Brad Wall is the right man to repair Canada-India relations, amidst news that Canada will soon be sending a new high commissioner to New Delhi.
“I’d be supportive of that,” said Smith when asked on Wednesday about the prospect of Wall becoming Canada’s next high commissioner to India.
“I think that Saskatchewan has done incredibly impressive work on expanding its footprint internationally through its trade offices, in particular India,” she added.
Moe was quick to echo Smith’s sentiments, hinting that Wall could possibly aim even higher than being Canada’s envoy to the emerging Asian superpower.
“I would also be a proponent for (Wall) to be not only high commissioner to India but essentially the face and the voice for many of Canada’s foreign relations,” said Moe.
“We’ll see what his answer is to that,” Moe joked.
The two Prairie premiers were speaking at a press conference in Lloydminister, Sask., after a joint caucus meeting.
Moe praised Wall for building inroads to India and other emerging markets during his tenure as Saskatchewan’s premier, between 2007 and 2018.
“Why I would be a proponent of (Wall’s) to be high commissioner to India is because of the effort and focus that he provided … to those province to nation relations, and province to industry relations in not just India but in many countries around the world,” said Moe.
Moe also commended Prime Minister Mark Carney for taking steps to mend Canada’s strained bilateral relationship with India.
Wall became the province’s first premier to visit India in 2011 and led a second trade mission in 2014.
Saskatchewan’s exports to India were valued at $1.3 billion in 2023, a 52 per cent jump from the midpoint of Wall’s tenure in 2013.
The province now produces more than a quarter of Canada’s total exports to India, while being home to just three per cent of the country’s population.
It is the top supplier globally of lentils and potash to India.
Carney and Indian counterpart Narendra Modi jointly announced at this week’s G7 summit in Kananaskis, Alta., that they’d be designating new high commissioners for the first time since 2023, when the murder of Canadian Sikh leader Hardeep Singh Nijjar caused a rupture in bilateral relations.
India’s current Ambassador to Spain Dinesh K. Patnaik has already been tapped as the next high commissioner to Canada, according to local reporting .
Reports from India indicate that Carney could reveal his pick for high commissioner to India as soon as next month.
Wall, 59, was critical of Carney predecessor Justin Trudeau’s approach to managing Canada-India relations, notably panning Trudeau’s controversial 2018 India trip .
“Here’s hoping that the federal mission does no further harm,” Wall said in a tongue-in-cheek 2018 social media post , which included screenshots of scathing international headlines documenting the visit.
Wall didn’t respond on Wednesday evening when asked about his interest in the high commissioner post.
He would join a number of ex-premiers who made the jump to key diplomatic posts, including ex-U.S. ambassador Gary Doer (Manitoba) and former high commissioner to the U.K. Gordon Campbell (British Columbia).
National Post
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