PM Carney heads to Europe for G7 summit

Prime Minister Mark Carney is heading to Ireland and France this week for the G7 summit, which runs June 15 to 17 in Evian-les-Bains.

The summit was delayed by a day after U.S. President Donald Trump announced the White House would host a UFC fight on June 14, which is also Flag Day and Trump's 80th birthday.

Official priorities include settling major geopolitical crises through G7 support to Ukraine, online protection for children, and crime prevention. But Fen Osler Hampson, an international affairs professor at Carleton University, told The Canadian Press the real discussions will unfold among the G6 leaders when Trump is elsewhere. "The real discussions will be among the remaining G6 leaders when Trump isn't in the room, in terms of how you deal with a president who is irascible, unpredictable and making life difficult for everyone," he said, noting Trump has personally insulted several European leaders.

Hampson said the unofficial agenda likely centers on conflict in the Middle East, energy security, and U.S. tariffs—issues rarely acknowledged in the formal program.

Canada hosted the G7 last year in Kananaskis, Alberta. Trump left that summit a day early due to Middle East conflict.

Before the summit, Carney will visit Paris and Dublin. In Ireland, he'll meet with Taoiseach Micheál Martin and President Catherine Connolly to deepen cultural and trade ties. A news release from the Prime Minister's Office notes this will be Canada's first official prime ministerial visit to Ireland in nearly a decade.

Bilateral merchandise trade between Canada and Ireland reached $6 billion in 2025, with Canadian exports of $1.1 billion (led by cereals) and imports of $4.9 billion (led by pharmaceutical products). Carney will also discuss defence, artificial intelligence, quantum technologies, and critical minerals with French President Macron.