September 10, 2026 – Kielce, Poland – Global Affairs Canada

This week, the Honourable Maninder Sidhu, Minister of International Trade, joined the Honourable David J. McGuinty, Minister of National Defence, at the International Defence Industry Exhibition (MSPO), held from September 8 to 11, 2026, in Kielce, Poland, to promote Canada’s defence industry, as well as to deepen Canada’s trade relationships with Poland and across Europe. Canada and Poland are strengthening ties in defence, trade, advanced technologies and energy security, and, as North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) Allies, are united in supporting collective defence and transatlantic security.

Minister Sidhu kicked off his visit to Poland in Warsaw by meeting with Andrzej Domański, Minister of Finance and Economy. They discussed opportunities to expand Canada-Poland commercial collaboration in priority sectors such as defence, energy and aerospace.  Minister Sidhu also met with both Miłosz Motyka, Minister of Energy, and Wojciech Wrochna, Plenipotentiary for Strategic Energy Infrastructure and Secretary of State at the Ministry of Energy, to champion Canada as one of the world’s most reliable suppliers of clean energy. At the meeting, Minister Sidhu promoted Canada’s successful nuclear energy program, based on the unique heavy water natural uranium reactor system, known as CANDU (CANada Deuterium Uranium). 

In Kielce, Minister Sidhu and Minister McGuinty attended MSPO 2026, where they met with defence industry leaders and formally opened the Canada Pavilion together with Władysław Kosiniak-Kamysz, Poland’s Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of National Defence. As this year’s lead nation, Canada is showcasing its defence and security capabilities, innovation and industrial expertise at MSPO, one of Europe’s premier defence exhibitions.

At MSPO 2026, more than 20 memorandums of understanding were signed, supporting future industry collaboration in the growing defence sector. This momentum is also reflected in trade figures, with Canadian defence exports to Europe increasing by 56% in the last year.

With a Team Canada approach, Canada’s presence at MSPO 2026 included more than 200 organizations and nearly 500 delegates from Canada’s industry and all levels of government, making it the country’s largest defence and security business mission worldwide and the largest business delegation Canada has ever brought to Poland. This included 20 economic development organizations from across the country, which participated in more than 200 pre-arranged meetings with international companies to promote Canada as a competitive destination for investment and attract job-creating investment. 

The ministers’ participation highlighted Canada’s commitment to expanding commercial and industrial cooperation with partners across Central and Eastern Europe.

Canada’s involvement at MSPO supports Canada’s broader Defence Industrial Strategy, as well as efforts to diversify and strengthen international partnerships and deepen defence industrial cooperation with European partners, including through Canada’s participation in the EU’s Security Action for Europe (SAFE) initiative. These efforts are also reinforced by Canada’s Strategic Exports Office, which helps Canadian businesses pursue major export opportunities in strategic sectors, including defence and security.