Latest news with #diplomaticthaw
New York Times
12 hours ago
- Politics
- New York Times
India and Canada Move to Mend Rift Over Sikh Activist's Killing
India and Canada signaled a significant diplomatic thaw nearly two years after the killing of a prominent Canadian Sikh cleric set off a deep rift between the two countries that culminated in each expelling the other's senior diplomats. The two countries said in separate statements on Tuesday that they would appoint new high commissioners, or ambassadors, restart trade talks and restore visa processing and other services to citizens. The announcements came after Prime Minister Narendra Modi of India and the Canadian leader, Mark Carney, met during the Group of 7 nations summit in Kananaskis, Alberta, on Tuesday. India is not a member of the bloc but Mr. Modi was invited to attend by Mr. Carney. 'The leaders agreed to designate new high commissioners, with a view to returning to regular services to citizens and businesses in both countries,' according to a statement from Mr. Carney's office. Indian officials said in a statement that the two countries are likely to restart 'senior ministerial as well as working-level engagements across various domains to rebuild trust and bring momentum to the relationship.' However, neither side referred to the reason their relations had deteriorated in the past two years. In September 2023, the Canadian government, led then by Justin Trudeau, accused India of orchestrating the fatal shooting of Hardeep Singh Nijjar, an activist who supported carving out a Sikh homeland, Khalistan, from India. Mr. Nijjar, a Canadian citizen, was fatally shot in British Columbia that June. The Indian government, which had branded Mr. Nijjar a terrorist, rejected the allegations and accused Canada of harboring extremists who were plotting violence on Indian soil in the name of Khalistan. It also alleged that Mr. Trudeau's accusations were politically motivated and he was sympathetic to Sikh separatists for political gain. Canada is home to the largest number of Sikhs outside India and many support his Liberal Party. Trade talks and business ties between the two countries deteriorated, as did services such as issuing travel visas. By last October, the rift had deepened. Canada kicked out India's high commissioner and five other diplomats, calling them 'persons of interest' in the killing of Mr. Nijjar. India retaliated by expelling six Canadian diplomats. But in recent months, Mr. Trudeau's resignation and the election of Mr. Carney — a prominent economist and former governor of the Bank of England — presented an opportunity for the two countries to reset their relationship. Matina Stevis-Gridneff contributed reporting.
The National
11-06-2025
- Politics
- The National
Tehran to scrap street name honouring assassin of Egyptian president Sadat
Iran 's capital has announced plans to scrap a street name that honoured one of the killers of former Egyptian president Anwar Sadat, a symbolic bone of contention in ties with Cairo since the assassination more than four decades ago. Khaled El Islambouli Street in the north of Tehran was named after the military officer who led an operation to take out Mr Sadat during a military parade in Cairo in October 1981. The naming has long been seen by Egypt as deliberate provocation and has contributed to decades of diplomatic hostility. Tehran regarded Mr Sadat as a traitor for signing Egypt's peace treaty with Israel in 1979. Renaming the street signals a thaw in 45 years of strained ties between the two regional powers – one of the Middle East's longest-standing rifts. The decision was announced by Tehran's city council, with a spokesman confirmed committee talks were under way to replace El Islambouli's name with another after co-ordination with Iran's Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The change comes as part of a routine review of street names in Tehran, the spokesman told Iran's Tasnim News Agency. Iranian media reported that late Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah, who was killed by an Israeli air strike on Beirut in September, has been floated as a potential replacement name. Mr El Islambouli, a lieutenant in the Egyptian military, was executed in 1982 over his role in Mr Sadat's assassination. The killing of the president was motivated by his signing of the Camp David Accords, the first peace treaty between an Arab state and Israel, which many in the Arab and Islamic world viewed as a betrayal of the Palestinian cause. After the assassination Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, Iran's supreme leader at the time, hailed Mr El Islambouli as a martyr and called on Egyptians to rise up against what he described as Mr Sadat's capitulation to Israel and the US. Tehran subsequently named the street after Mr El Islambouli and erected murals in his honour, souring relations with Cairo. The decision to rename the road follows a visit to Cairo last week by Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, who met Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El Sisi, Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty and International Atomic Energy Agency director general Rafael Grossi. The talks, described as 'fruitful' by both sides, constituted a significant step towards healing a regional divide that dates back to the aftermath of Iran's 1979 Islamic Revolution. Mr Araghchi said in a speech in Cairo that diplomacy between Iran and Egypt had entered 'a new phase'. Egyptian officials have long regarded the street name as a major obstacle to harmonious ties, seeing it as an affront to Mr Sadat's legacy and a reminder of Iran's revolutionary-era hostility. For Iran, the renaming could represent a pragmatic shift in attitude towards its neighbours. By addressing Egypt's prolonged grievance, Tehran may be signalling a willingness to move beyond ideological rigidity and focus on co-operation. The gesture aligns with broader attempts by Iran to repair its image and reduce tension. It comes amid shifting regional dynamics, as Gulf nations such as Saudi Arabia and the UAE also begin engaging with Iran. 'There is a great deal of political will to boost bilateral relations and remove any obstacles that might stand in the way,' Mr Araghchi said after his meeting with Mr El Sisi.
