New Delhi: European Council President Antonio Luís Santos da Costa and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen will undertake a three-day State Visit to India from January 25 to 27 and will serve as Chief Guests at the 77th Republic Day celebrations.
During their visit, the two leaders will co-chair the 16th India-European Union Summit scheduled for January 27. They are expected to call on President Droupadi Murmu and hold both restricted and delegation-level discussions with Prime Minister Narendra Modi. An India-EU Business Forum is also likely to be organised on the sidelines of the summit.
India and the European Union have shared a strategic partnership since 2004, with cooperation steadily expanding across multiple sectors. The previous India-EU Summit was held virtually on July 15, 2020. According to the Ministry of External Affairs, bilateral engagement has gained fresh momentum following the visit of the EU College of Commissioners to India in February this year.
The ministry stated that the participation of EU leaders as Chief Guests at the Republic Day celebrations, along with the upcoming summit, is expected to further strengthen the India-EU Strategic Partnership and promote collaboration in key areas of mutual interest.
President Costa and President von der Leyen are visiting India at the invitation of Prime Minister Modi. Their visit comes at a crucial time, as negotiations for the India-EU Free Trade Agreement have reached an advanced stage.
Commerce Secretary Rajesh Agrawal said on Thursday that 20 out of the 24 chapters under the proposed FTA have already been concluded, with discussions on the remaining chapters continuing. He noted that both sides are engaged in regular virtual negotiations and are making efforts to meet the timeline ahead of the leaders’ meeting later this month.
Earlier this month, Union Minister of Commerce and Industry Piyush Goyal concluded a two-day visit to Brussels, which was seen as an important step in advancing the India-EU Free Trade Agreement talks.
