Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese announced on Sunday that Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney will visit Australia in March, where he will also address parliament.
The announcement follows Albanese’s praise for Carney’s high-profile speech at the World Economic Forum in Davos last week, in which Carney criticised “powerful nations” for weaponising economic integration and tariffs.
In a televised address, Albanese said, “My friend Mark Carney will visit Australia with an address to the parliament in March.” Albanese also highlighted the growing alignment between “middle powers” like Canada and Australia in response to shifting global dynamics.
Carney’s speech was “well directed”, said the Australian premier, and added that he “agreed with him”.
The Canadian leader urged middle powers to accept the end of the old rules-based global order and work together to avoid victimisation by American hegemony, a narrative that angered US President Donald Trump, who later revoked his invitation to Canada to join the ‘Board of Peace’.
Carney’s visit Down Under in March comes amidst his efforts to expand his country’s trade basket and deepen ties with countries such as China and Australia, in order to reduce reliance on the US, its long-standing ally.
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However, Trump’s economic and political snub has forced long-time partners to look for greener pastures elsewhere.
In recent months, Canada has signed and advanced agreements with China, India, and some ASEAN nations. Most recently, Carney visited Beijing, where he signed a new strategic partnership with President Xi Jinping, that focuses on increasing trade and includes a roadmap for economic cooperation and tariff reductions.
Under the deal, China will lower tariffs on Canadian canola seed and other agricultural products to approximately 15 per cent (down from 84 per cent), while Canada, in return, agreed to allow up to 49,000 Chinese electric vehicles into its market annually at a 6.1-per-cent tariff rate.
Canada and Australia have also already signed a trilateral technology partnership to collaborate on AI development and nuclear energy.
Carney signed Canada’s first bilateral trade agreement with Indonesia (an ASEAN member) in September 2025, which includes reduced tariffs on over 95 per cent of Canadian exports.
Negotiations for a comprehensive Canada-ASEAN Free Trade Agreement are also accelerating, with expectations that they will conclude in 2026.
Carney’s Australia visit is expected to focus on trade diversification, critical minerals cooperation, technology, and shared concerns over economic coercion by major powers.
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