Good news from the 'never 51st US state'

For those charmed by the thought of Donald Trump's 'invitation' to make countries part of the US, Canada has shown that the idea is, at best, 'meh'. It can be safely said that the prime sponsor of the Liberal Party's victory, under the leadership of Mark Carney, in the polls was Trump and his talk of making America's northern neighbour its '51st state'. The deciding issue before voters became who - Carney, or opposition Conservative leader Pierre Poilievre - would be better at standing up to 'Genghis' Trump. A victory was almost unthinkable when Liberals were trailing 24 points behind in polls in December, before Justin Trudeau stepped down as PM. The slim victory sends out a clear message: nationalism can be activated when even talk of annexation by 'hook or by crook' is dangled before a country, especially if it happens to be relatively prosperous like Canada (or Denmark-governed Greenland).

The Liberal win is good news for India-Canada bilateral ties. Not only does Carney have pre-existing connections with India as an investment banker, but his focus on trade and economy also gives both sides a place to begin relationship-repairing. Resetting bilateral ties is among his declared priorities. Carney has not mentioned anything about the 'Khalistani problem' leading to strained ties with New Delhi. But he has stated that 'strains on the relationship' can be addressed with mutual respect. What will give India added comfort is the much-reduced strength of pro-Khalistani Jagmeet Singh-led New Democratic Party (NDP), a former ally of the Trudeau administration.

Ottawa's message: Canada can hold its own, and that it will reset the strange digression undertaken by Trudeau to restore friendly ties with India. Welcome news on both fronts.