Agreement expands market access and boosts Canadian industry competitiveness in Greece
October 13, 2026 - Gatineau, Quebec
The Government of Canada is committed to strengthening its relationship with its European partners and expanding economic avenues for Canada.
Today, the Honourable Joël Lightbound, Minister of Government Transformation, Public Works and Procurement and Quebec Lieutenant, and the Honourable Anita Anand, Minister of Foreign Affairs, announced the signing of a General Security of Information Agreement (GSOIA) with Greece. The signatories were Sonya Thissen, Canada’s Ambassador to the Hellenic Republic and High Commissioner to the Republic of Cyprus, and for Greece, Major General Emmanouil Chatzis, Director E Branch at the Hellenic National Defence General Staff, in the presence of Minister of National Defence of Greece Nikolaos Dendias and the Chief of the Hellenic National Defence General Staff, General Dimitrios Choupis.
The formal signing, held in Athens, Greece, marks a strategic step in Canada’s push to expand its collaboration with a valued and like-minded EU partner. By enabling the secure exchange of classified information, this agreement will strengthen cooperation on trade, innovation, advanced technologies, and security, while creating new opportunities for Canadian businesses and workers. It will help position Canada as a trusted partner in strategic sectors, support economic growth, and contribute to building a stronger, more competitive Canadian economy.
Canada and Greece share a dynamic and growing economic relationship rooted in shared democratic values, strong people-to-people ties, and important trade, investment, and innovation partnerships. As maritime nations, Canada and Greece also share strategic interests in areas such as naval security, coastal infrastructure protection, and maritime intelligence.
The GSOIA builds on these deep existing foundations, further enabling the secure exchange of classified information, including in sensitive areas such as defence intelligence and technical data on weapons systems. This helps support our shared security and can enable commercial opportunities by ensuring top-tier security standards for data sharing between authorized contractors and government institutions.
Once in force, the agreement will:
deepen Canada’s engagement with Greece, a North Atlantic Treaty Organization ally through cooperation in operations, equipment sharing, and shared Atlantic priorities
expand market access and boost Canadian industry competitiveness in Greece
facilitate collaboration with Greece’s specialized workforce and advanced defence technologies and
enhance joint efforts in maritime situational awareness, infrastructure protection, and countering transnational threats
Quotes
“Canada and Greece share a deep commitment to democracy, the rule of law, and the values that underpin our security and prosperity. At a time of growing global uncertainty, trusted partnerships are more important than ever. Our new General Security of Information Agreement will enable the secure exchange of sensitive information, strengthen cooperation in strategic sectors, and create new opportunities for Canadian industry. It will help Canadian businesses compete for new opportunities abroad while supporting jobs, growth, and innovation here at home. This is another example of our government taking action to strengthen Canada’s economy, advance our interests, and deepen cooperation with trusted allies.”
The Honourable Joël Lightbound
Minister of Government Transformation, Public Works and Procurement, and Quebec Lieutenant
“Canada’s relationship with Greece reflects a shared vision for global cooperation rooted in innovation, resilience, and mutual prosperity. This agreement opens new avenues for collaboration in sectors that matter to both countries—like aerospace and advanced technologies—while reinforcing our common economic security.”
The Honourable Anita Anand
Minister of Foreign Affairs
“For generations, Canada and Greece have defended the principles and institutions of democracy at home and abroad. The General Security of Information Agreement signed today makes it possible for government and industry in our two countries to communicate and co-operate securely on a wide range of bilateral defence priorities. The agreement affirms our government’s commitment to building a stronger, safer Canada in co-operation with trusted allies.”
The Honourable Stephen Fuhr
Secretary of State, Defence Procurement
Quick facts
GSOIAs are negotiated by Public Services and Procurement Canada’s Industrial Security Sector in collaboration with Global Affairs Canada and National Defence.
Canada and Greece are both signatories to the Canada-European Union Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement which facilitates market access, reduces tariffs, and promotes investment opportunities.
Noah Note: Another one! I feel like I put the GSOIA explainer so much, that most of you probably know it by heart by now, but for the new I will give the explainer.
GSOIAs are a very important step in opening up both markets and creating lasting industrial partnerships.
These are an important part of building up the Defence Industrial Base that gets missed by a lot of folks. It sets up a proper framework for sharing information that goes into things like tech transfers, joint cooperation on new technologies, and provides industry a way to access classified information to better bid on projects.
Basically, it provides a set way for government and industry to access classified information from a foreign country, or in this case a multinational organization. For industry, this means a process for getting verified and, in turn, access to the information they need to bid on projects or exchange classified information with foreign entities.
Canada has secured new GSOIA with the ESA, Spain, Germany, France, and Portugal in the last year, with several other similar agreements currently in the works. It is a foundational step in depeening cooperation, even if many often miss them. So it makes sense in a time of diversification that getting more similar agreements signed is a prioirty for the current government.
The Canadian government, as you can see, is very keen on building these relations and securing these sort of agreements. There are probably by now over a dozen still in the works. As we have seen, it's common to see one at least every few months now.