Prime Minister Mark Carney stepped off his plane in Saint-Pierre-et-Miquelon on Sunday, and French President Emmanuel Macron met him on the tarmac. The two shook hands, then hugged. Airport workers huddled nearby to film it on their phones.
The French islands sit about 20 kilometres off the south coast of Newfoundland and Labrador. Carney is the first Canadian prime minister to make an official visit there, Macron’s office said. Macron is the first French president to come in more than a decade.
Shared launch systems
Speaking to reporters, Carney said the two leaders will task their space agencies and defence ministries with developing and sharing common infrastructure, including space launch systems and ground-based reception facilities. No sites, costs or timelines were given.
They will also direct the regional cooperation commission linking Atlantic Canada and Saint-Pierre-et-Miquelon to widen its work on economic growth, energy transition and climate resilience. The French and Canadian chambers of commerce are expected to sign an agreement in the coming weeks.
Alain Di Crescenzo, head of the French Chamber of Commerce and Industry, called that a “concrete step in our commitment to turning a historic relationship into real business opportunities.” Candace Laing, president of the Canadian Chamber of Commerce, said her group had already led a trade mission of Canadian business leaders to Paris last June, with “many more such engagements planned.”
A visit with history
The leaders held a working lunch, then laid a wreath at a memorial to the volunteers of Free France. In December 1941, Free French forces peacefully liberated the archipelago from the Vichy regime, which had aided Nazi Germany.
Macron had been due on the islands for three days before heading to New York for the UN General Assembly. Carney, who flies to New York on Monday, chose to join him. Both countries described the visit as a show of unity and respect.
A spokesperson for Macron’s office framed it in wider terms: “In a world characterized by a return to power politics, geopolitical tensions and new dependencies, France and Canada share a common ambition: to work together to strengthen their capacity to make decisions and act independently.”
The meeting comes as both Canada and Europe face rising tension with the United States, and as Canada and the European Union work toward a broader alliance. European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said on Wednesday she wants Canada to become the first “associate member” of the EU. Carney told the European Parliament in Strasbourg on Thursday that the name and nature of any deal are undecided, but that it will go to Parliament for debate and a vote. On Sunday he said the Canada-France partnership sits at the heart of Canada’s growing relationship with Europe.
