Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni and Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney held a bilateral meeting on the sidelines of the G7 Leaders' Summit in Evian, France, on Tuesday. The leaders agreed to strengthen cooperation in critical minerals, energy, defence, and secure supply chains, while launching negotiations for Canada's purchase of Italian-made M-346 advanced jet trainer aircraft.
Key Outcomes of the Bilateral Meeting
In a post on X, Meloni stated that the meeting reviewed the implementation of the action plan for strengthened Italy-Canada cooperation, and both sides agreed to further consolidate it. Carney also posted on X, highlighting that Italian company Eni is buying graphite from the Nouveau Monde mine in Québec, and the two nations will stockpile critical minerals together.
Critical Minerals and Energy Cooperation
According to an official readout from the Canadian Prime Minister's Office, the leaders noted ongoing efforts to deepen cooperation across critical minerals, energy, defence, and secure supply chains. The readout highlighted a recent investment of almost USD 100 million by Italian energy company Eni to procure Canadian graphite from Nouveau Monde Graphite's Matawinie Mine in Quebec. Italy has also become a member of the Critical Minerals Production Alliance, launched at the 2025 G7 Summit in Kananaskis.
Building on this progress, Prime Minister Carney welcomed Italy's intention to collaborate with Canada to stockpile critical minerals. These efforts are expected to catalyse further partnerships between the two countries in energy and industry.
Defence Cooperation and M-346 Jet Trainer Deal
Defence cooperation emerged as a major outcome, with leaders announcing the launch of negotiations for Canada's acquisition of the M-346 Master advanced jet trainer aircraft produced by Leonardo, one of Italy's largest aerospace companies. The readout stated that this agreement will enable the Royal Canadian Air Force to train on state-of-the-art equipment and build sovereign training capability.
Underscoring Ottawa's defence-industrial strategy, the Canadian statement said, "This is Canada's Defence Industrial Strategy in action, with the Build-Partner-Buy approach building at home and partnering with reliable allies." Carney also highlighted Canada's efforts to establish a Defence, Security and Resilience Bank that would provide multi-year, low-cost financing for defence, security, and resilience initiatives.
International Issues
On international issues, the two leaders reaffirmed their enduring support for Ukraine and agreed on the imperative of keeping up pressure on Russia to achieve a just and lasting peace. They also discussed developments in West Asia. The readout added that Prime Minister Carney and Prime Minister Meloni agreed to remain in close contact.
