Brussels: The European Union is looking forward to a major comprehensive agreement with India, which is expected to be signed during the visit of the President of the European Commission and the President of the European Council to India.
Speaking in the European Parliament, Kaja Kallas, EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, said: “Europe is ready to implement a powerful new agenda with India. Today the EU agreed to move forward with signing a new security and defense partnership. It will expand our cooperation in areas such as maritime security, counter-terrorism and cyber defense. I look forward to signing it next week at the EU-India summit in New Delhi.”
The European Union and India will hold their 16th summit in New Delhi, during which a new EU-India comprehensive strategic agenda is expected to be adopted.
Earlier, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said the European Union was close to finalizing a free trade deal with India and noted that some describe it as “the mother of all deals.”
Speaking at the World Economic Forum in Davos, she highlighted Europe’s intention to develop trade and international cooperation. She also discussed the scale of the proposed trade deal with India.
“There is still work to do. But we are on the cusp of a historic trade deal. Some call it the mother of all deals. A deal that would create a market of 2 billion people, representing almost a quarter of global GDP,” von der Leyen said.
The President of the European Commission has announced that she will visit India next weekend. She said the visit was aimed at advancing work on the proposed trade deal and added that important work remains to be done to strengthen economic relations and deepen cooperation between Europe and India.
Placing the proposed deal with India within Europe’s broader global trade approach, von der Leyen said Europe remained open to doing business with partners around the world.
European Council President Antonio Luis Santos da Costa and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen will pay a three-day state visit to India from January 25 to 27 and will be the chief guests at the 77th Republic Day celebrations.
During the visit, the leaders will also co-chair the 16th India-EU Summit to be held on January 27. They will meet President Droupadi Murmu and hold restricted and delegation-level talks with Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
An India-EU business forum is also expected to be organized on the sidelines of the India-EU summit. India and the European Union have been strategic partners since 2004. The 15th India-EU Summit was held virtually on July 15, 2020.
The participation of EU leaders as chief guests at the 77th Republic Day and 16th India-EU Summit will further deepen the India-EU strategic partnership and advance collaboration in priority areas of mutual interest.
President Costa and President von der Leyen are visiting India at the invitation of Prime Minister Modi. The two leaders’ visit comes amid negotiations between India and the European Union for a free trade agreement, which are at an advanced stage and are expected to be completed by the time of the visit.
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