Overview

• Economy Minister Katherina Reiche and Canadian counterpart Tim Hodgson signed a joint declaration in Berlin to expand cooperation on extraction, processing and recycling of critical raw materials to reduce reliance on China.
• Prime Minister Mark Carney announced a three‑digit‑million investment to boost Canada’s East Coast port capacity, including upgrades in Montreal and the planned Churchill hub, to speed shipments of minerals to Europe.
• Chancellor Friedrich Merz and Carney highlighted joint support for Ukraine, discussing verifiable security guarantees and strengthening NATO’s eastern flank, where Canada leads the alliance’s presence in Latvia.
• Defense industrial links featured as Thyssenkrupp Marine Systems remains in contention to supply up to twelve submarines to Canada, with a decision expected in the coming months after Carney’s visit to the Kiel yard.
• Officials cast the drive as supply‑chain diversification following Chinese export curbs on rare earths and as a reliable transatlantic partnership during volatile U.S. trade policy, while differing on recognition of a Palestinian state.