Carney set to speak to reporters for first time on globetrotting trip

SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA — Prime Minister Mark Carney is expected to take questions from reporters for the first time since embarking on a 10-day trip to India, Australia and Japan last week.

It will be Carney’s first press conference since Feb. 17, when he announced the Liberal government’s new defence industrial strategy. He will take questions on Wednesday morning in Sydney, Australia, which translates to 4:35 p.m. ET on Tuesday.

The prime minister has yet to field questions from reporters about strikes by the U.S. and Israel on Iran on Feb. 28, which killed Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. Carney issued a statement on social media saying he supported the strikes and spoke about the conflict during a question and answer session after a speech in New Delhi, India.

Carney has also not addressed a brewing controversy in his government about the security concerns posed by the Indian government.

CSIS, Canada’s spy agency, says India remains one of the main perpetrators of foreign interference and espionage against Canada, which contradicts a recent claim by a senior government official that Indian agents are no longer linked to such crimes.

Several MPs in the Liberal caucus have also publicly disagreed with the official’s comment.

“Any suggestions these threats have been resolved does not reflect the current security reality facing Canada,” Ruby Sahota, the secretary of state for combating crime, wrote on social media.

Along with speaking to the media, Carney is expected to attend two signing ceremonies and take part in a “featured discussion” at the Lowy Institute, a Sydney-based think tank on Wednesday local time.

More to come.

National Post

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