Prime Minister Mark Carney is scheduled to depart for Ankara on Monday to attend the annual NATO summit—the first visit by a Canadian prime minister to Turkey since 2015. This trip marks the beginning of Carney's week-long journey to the Middle East, which will conclude with a brief stay in Saudi Arabia aimed at strengthening trade and investment relations.
The NATO summit, set for July 7 and 8, has been scaled back from the traditional two-day meeting to a dinner and a single session where representatives from all member states will convene. Kerry Buck, Canada's former ambassador to NATO, noted that this year's gathering is described as a "short, sweet summit to try to avoid any drama," given U.S. President Donald Trump's tendency to disrupt and insult allies. She emphasized that the primary focus is on "managing the U.S. and keeping President Trump committed to the alliance."
This summit follows the recent G7 meeting in France, which proceeded smoothly. Allies are hopeful for a similar outcome as they discuss plans for increased military spending. NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte has stated that member states must present "credible" plans to meet the new alliance commitment of spending five percent of national GDP on defense by 2035.
Canadian government officials have indicated that Carney will participate in discussions on financing the defense sector and highlight Canada's progress in boosting defense spending at the summit. While Carney's schedule of bilateral meetings is still being finalized, the trip also aims to strengthen Canada's ties with Turkey, a key NATO ally.
Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan has echoed Canada's perspective that Europe should complement the military alliance without duplicating NATO's efforts. Chris Kilford, a former senior Canadian military attaché in Turkey, noted that while Ottawa can work on securing trade benefits from Turkey, progress could be hindered by geopolitical issues. He stated, "There are many things that can test this relationship. But for now, we seem to be on a very positive track, and I think it's to the benefit of both countries."
Both Canada and Turkey are striving to diversify their trading partnerships to prevent supply chain disruptions. For instance, Turkey has recently shown interest in Canadian nuclear technology to reduce its dependence on nuclear projects involving Russia. The Carney government has identified four pillars for its relationship with Turkey: energy exports, economic opportunities and trade, defense and security, and people-to-people ties. Global Affairs Canada views Turkey as an emerging market of broad interest to Canada, with opportunities for Canadian companies in agriculture, life sciences, mining, and infrastructure.
Turkey has assisted Canada in evacuating citizens from various Middle East crises and in bringing home activists detained by Israel for joining flotillas that sought to deliver aid to Palestinians in Gaza. However, the relationship has faced challenges, particularly concerning Canada's large Armenian diaspora. Canada has long maintained that Turkey committed a genocide against Armenians a century ago—a claim that Ankara has consistently denied. Additionally, Ottawa suspended arms sales to Turkey seven years ago over reports that Turkey was diverting Canadian military components to Azerbaijan for use against Armenia and ethnic Armenians. Canada later tightened these restrictions before eventually lifting them.
Kilford observed that these tensions resulted in Turkey's "very lucrative" arms industry being cut off from Ontario-made surveillance and targeting sensors that had been installed in Turkish-made Bayraktar drones. Consequently, countries like Ukraine began purchasing these Canadian sensors and installing them in Turkish drones.
Turkey has also criticized Canada for granting asylum to numerous Turkish political dissidents—a move uncommon among military allies. Kilford remarked, "As far as Turkey is concerned, though, we're granting political asylum to terrorists. They don't like it," referring to Turkey as a "flawed democracy." The Committee to Protect Journalists has reported that Turkey is among the top jailers of journalists. Kilford noted that the majority of Turkish media outlets are "either directly or indirectly owned by the government or government supporters."
Ahead of the summit, Turkey has erected extensive barricades across Ankara, facilitating the movement of motorcades and making street protests more challenging. The country is currently experiencing high inflation, with President Recep Tayyip Erdogan intervening in the central bank and many of his opponents being jailed. Kilford described Turkey as an increasingly important state, maintaining relative stability in a region undergoing significant upheaval—from Russia's invasion of Ukraine to the collapse of Syria's dictatorship and the war in Iran. Turkey is involved in numerous major conflicts and is a destination for migration from Afghanistan and Syria. Turkish Airlines, which Canada has recently allowed to operate more flights, serves destinations that most carriers avoid, such as Kabul, Caracas, and Mogadishu.
Despite these complexities, Kilford noted that Turkey has long felt marginalized in geopolitical alliances like NATO and the European Union, which it has been attempting to join for years.
As Prime Minister Carney prepares for the NATO summit in Ankara, the focus will be on managing the dynamics within the alliance, particularly in relation to the United States, and strengthening bilateral relations with Turkey to address shared challenges and opportunities.