G7: PM Modi's Global Outreach For Anti-Terror Coalition

His predecessor, Justin Trudeau, made no effort to arrest the slide in the relationship between the two countries. He allowed it to slip into crisis, notwithstanding the growing business interests, and more importantly, the diaspora ties.

India is critical to Canada’s Indo-Pacific outreach.

Ottawa needed some back-channel diplomacy and efforts from other G7 members to extend an invitation to the Indian PM, whose presence would add significance to the summit amid the ongoing geopolitical turmoil.

PM Modi will utilise the opportunity to build a broad global anti-terror coalition against Pakistan-based terror infrastructure and terror proxies. New Delhi will surely seek concrete support against terror finances as well.

Pakistan-based terror infrastructure is not just a headache for India, but also for the region and the international community. Anti-terrorism outfits have proof of the involvement of Islamabad-backed terrorists in activities across the world.

While France has indicated it has felt India's agony as a victim of cross-border terror, other parts of the Western world, Japan in particular, need to get the import of this threat and its impact on a pluralist democracy like India.

Pakistan has often been able to exploit fault lines in the West and blackmail Western capitals with the nuclear option to try to get sympathy. However, the Indian economy and its story far outweigh what Pakistan can offer.

Such anti-state activities do not help Pakistan’s already fragile economy, which has been essentially running on aid. In May, the International Monetary Fund’s executive board, which completed its first review under the Extended Fund Facility (EFF) arrangement, approved a US$ 1 billion financial assistance package, albeit with stringent conditions. 

While Pakistan Army Chief General Asim Munir’s visit to the US had drawn significant attention, especially in the aftermath of the Pahalgam attack and Operation Sindoor, the Israel-Iran conflict has somewhat put him in a spot, especially as the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) nations have collectively condemned Israel’s actions. 

On Tuesday, US President Donald Trump left the G7 Summit to rush back to Washington, posting on X that everyone should evacuate Tehran. “What a shame, and a waste of human life,” he wrote. “Simply stated, IRAN CAN NOT HAVE A NUCLEAR WEAPON,” he posted. 

Amid the rapidly changing geopolitical contours, Modi’s visit to Canada and its outcome will be closely watched. 

(The writer is a commentator on geopolitics and geo-economics. Views are personal)