Prime Minister Carney expands Canada's partnership with Ireland across science, technology, and culture

WESTPORT, Ireland, June 14, 2026 /CNW/ - In a more dangerous and divided world, Canada is building our strength at home and diversifying our partnerships abroad. Our European allies are central to this mission, as we share history, values, and – increasingly – shared interests and ambitions.

Ireland is one of Canada's closest partners in Europe, and today that relationship is flourishing. Bilateral trade has grown nearly 150% over the past decade, and Ireland is a key partner in investment, agriculture and agri-food, clean growth, and economic security. Building on that momentum, the Prime Minister, Mark Carney, today concluded a successful bilateral visit to Ireland. This marked the first visit to Ireland by a Canadian Prime Minister in nearly a decade.

In Dublin, Prime Minister Carney met with Taoiseach Martin to elevate the bilateral relationship with stronger cooperation across key sectors, guided by a new joint statement. This includes:

• Partnering on artificial intelligence (AI) by deepening cooperation and leveraging Canada's AI for All strategy and Ireland's new "Digital Ireland" strategy. Canada is committed to harnessing the AI revolution to seize opportunities, improve well-being, and save lives. Results are immediate, with Canada-based OpenText announcing yesterday their investment of more than $160 million in Cork, Ireland, to establish their European hub for AI.
• Strengthening resilient health systems and supply chains through collaboration on regenerative medicine, pharmaceutical manufacturing, workforce development, and biomanufacturing skills. This cooperation is reflected in the following recently signed Memoranda of Understanding (MOU):
  • An MOU between the Toronto-based Centre for Commercialization of Regenerative Medicine (CCRM) and Ireland's RINN Advanced Therapies national research centre toward exploring the establishment of a CCRM Ireland hub. This would accelerate the development and commercialisation of innovative health technologies while creating new market opportunities for Canadian companies.
  • An MOU between the Canadian Alliance for Skills and Training in Life Sciences (CASTL) and Ireland's National Institute for Bioprocessing Research and Training (NIBRT) to expand collaboration on workforce development in the biopharmaceutical and life sciences sectors.
• Advancing food security and agri-food cooperation by increasing two-way investment, harnessing opportunities enabled by Canada's National Food Security Strategy, and pursuing a joint partnership on global food security.
• Accelerating climate and clean growth cooperation, including engagement on clean technologies and methane mitigation, as well as joint leadership on emissions reduction through multilateral forums and international partnerships.
• Deepening collaboration in research, innovation, and emerging technologies, including researcher mobility, commercialisation, research, and stronger links between Canadian and Irish innovation.

As a testament to the deep people-to-people ties between the two countries, Prime Minister Carney announced a contribution of up to $2 million toward the launch of Canada-Ireland 180, a landmark cultural initiative to be held in 2027 to commemorate 180 years since the mass migration of over 100,000 Irish people to Canada. The initiative will celebrate the shared heritage between Canada and Ireland, empower Irish-Canadian artists, and deepen cultural exchanges between our two countries.

The leaders also agreed to strengthen security and defence cooperation between Canada and Ireland, including through the Canada-European Union (EU) Security and Defence Partnership and the Security Action for Europe (SAFE) initiative. They committed to exploring practical cooperation between the Canadian Armed Forces and the Irish Defence Forces in relation to maritime security training.

The Prime Minister and the Taoiseach underscored the Canada-EU Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA) as a catalyst for economic growth. They discussed the significant progress Ireland has made toward full ratification, with the amendments to the Arbitration Act now passed through the Oireachtas – Ireland's legislature.

After Dublin, the Prime Minister travelled to County Mayo, where he met with the President of Ireland, Catherine Connolly. He also met leaders from the local community, in this region with deep ties to tens of thousands of Canadians.

Canada's new government is building a stronger, more competitive, and more resilient economy. By strengthening partnerships with trusted allies, attracting investment, and expanding access to global markets, Canada is creating new opportunities for our workers, businesses, and industries while building a stronger economy at home.

Quote

"With our common history and shared values, Canada and Ireland have developed a unique transatlantic worldview rooted in a simple conviction: we are stronger when we are connected. With this deeper cooperation, we are building new opportunities for our people. Together, we will be powerful, pivotal, and a purposeful force for good – reliable partners in a world that is anything but."
-- The Rt. Hon. Mark Carney, Prime Minister of Canada

Quick facts

• This was Prime Minister Carney's first official visit to Ireland and the first official visit to County Mayo by a Canadian Prime Minister.
• During their meeting, Prime Minister Carney and Taoiseach Martin also underlined various commercial agreements recently made between Canadian and Irish businesses, including:
  • A commitment by Irish manufacturing company Smurfit Westrock to invest $110 million in its Canadian operations by 2030. The company, which operates five paper and packaging facilities across Canada, employs approximately 4,000 people nationwide.
  • A $5 million investment from Bevcraft and Swaay Technologies to expand their current manufacturing facility in Trois-Rivières, Québec, and scale up the development, trial, and manufacturing of new beverage products, including innovative beverage container digital printing systems that will be used across North America.
  • EllisDon's expansion into Ireland, which will support the establishment of health care facilities occupied by Ireland's Health Service Executive – the publicly funded health care system in Ireland – and related health care stakeholders.
• In 2025, bilateral merchandise trade between Canada and Ireland totalled $6 billion, with Canadian exports to Ireland valued at $1.1 billion and imports at $4.9 billion.
• In 2025, Ireland was Canada's seventh-largest agri-food and seafood export market in the EU, with exports valued at $400.5 million. Canadian agri-food and seafood imports from Ireland reached $345.2 million that year.
• This visit followed a visit to Paris on June 12, 2026, where the Prime Minister renewed and expanded the Canada-France partnership across energy and critical minerals, technology and AI, talent and culture, and defence.

Related products

• Joint statement on advancing the Canada-Ireland Partnership
• Prime Minister Carney meets with Taoiseach of Ireland Micheál Martin
• Prime Minister Carney meets with President of Ireland Catherine Connolly

Associated link

• Canada-Ireland relations

This document is also available at https://pm.gc.ca

SOURCE Prime Minister's Office

PMO Media Relations: [email protected]