Macron and Carney to hold talks on strengthening Canada-France economic and defense ties

President Emmanuel Macron is set to meet Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney in the French Atlantic archipelago of Saint Pierre and Miquelon, a move signaling France's sovereignty over the territory and its close relationship with Canada. This is the first visit by a French president to the archipelago since Francois Hollande's trip in 2014.

The trip comes amid Canada's efforts to strengthen ties with the European Union as trade tensions with the United States escalate and relations with Washington deteriorate under President Donald Trump. Located off Canada's Atlantic coast, Saint Pierre and Miquelon is France's only remaining territory in North America. The visit will highlight France's geostrategic presence in the North Atlantic, maritime sovereignty, adaptation to climate change, and cooperation with Canada.

France plans to accelerate air defense deliveries to Ukraine, according to diplomats. The visit, which Macron is undertaking en route to the UN General Assembly, also carries symbolic weight following Trump's post of a map of the United States and its territories draped in the U.S. flag, including Saint Pierre and Miquelon and several French Caribbean territories.