New Delhi, Jan 23 (PTI) The India-European Union summit next week will see both sides projecting global leadership to address pressing challenges in critical areas of trade, defence and supply chains in the context of the turbulent geopolitical environment, European officials said on Friday.
President of the European Council, Antonio Costa, and President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, will hold summit talks with Prime Minister Narendra Modi in New Delhi on January 27 against the backdrop of increasing global concerns over disruptions caused by the Trump administration’s economic and security policies.
The two sides are set to announce the conclusion of the much-awaited free trade agreement, firm up a strategic defence partnership pact and a framework for mobility of Indian professionals at the summit.
Costa and Leyen will grace the Republic Day celebrations as chief guests on January 26.
“We are looking at a summit with clear messages from two global actors — the two biggest democracies in the world; we will come together, show leadership on global issues,” the officials said.
The broad focus of the summit will be on trade, defence and security, and climate change, and more importantly, to strengthen the rules-based global order, they added.
“We are expecting high-profile deliverables from the summit. Our strengths are complementary in trade, talent, technology, and, importantly, we see each other as reliable partners. So closer cooperation is not just logical, but it’s necessary,” said one of the officials.
The officials said India’s interest in working more closely with Europe has been growing steadily, and there is political will on both sides to expand the overall trajectory of the relations.
“We don’t see eye-to-eye on everything, but we do share a core set of interests which include having a stable international order,” they noted, adding the summit will also be an opportunity to discuss with India “Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine”.
President Kosta will reiterate the message that this war represents an existential threat for Europe and poses a direct challenge to the rules-based international order, and that it has clear consequences also in the Indo-Pacific, they noted.
“We are aware of India’s historic relationship with Russia, and in this context, it is important to encourage India to use its leverage in this regard towards the peace efforts,” the officials said.
Alongside the free trade agreement, the 27-nation EU is also looking at additional measures to boost investment and business cooperation with India in specific supply chains, including clean hydrogen, solar equipment, machinery and manufacturing.
The officials said the new framework on mobility will cover students, researchers, workers and highly skilled professionals, and the central focus of the initiative is to better support Indian talent coming to Europe.
The defence partnership framework will support cooperation between the two sides in defence industrial collaboration. The two sides are also expected to deliberate on the ambitious India-Middle East-Europe Economic Corridor (IMEC).
The IMEC initiative was firmed up on the sidelines of the G20 Summit in Delhi in 2023.
Billed as a pathbreaking initiative, it envisages a vast road, railroad and shipping network among Saudi Arabia, India, the United States and Europe with an aim to ensure integration among Asia, the Middle East and the West.
The ties between India and the EU have been on an upswing in the last few years.
The EU, as a bloc, is India’s largest trading partner in goods. For the financial year 2024-25, India’s total trade in goods with the EU was worth about USD 136 billion, with exports around USD 76 billion and imports at USD 60 billion.
The India-EU Connectivity Partnership was launched in 2021, and it focused on transport, digital, energy networks, and the flow of people, goods, services, data and capital. PTI MPB NSD NSD
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