New Delhi: The visit of European Council President Antonio Costa and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen to India later this month marks one of the most politically significant moments in India–European Union (EU) relations in over two decades.
Their participation as chief guests at the Republic Day celebrations is not merely ceremonial but reflects a deepening strategic convergence between New Delhi and Brussels at a time when both sides are preparing to conclude a long-awaited free trade agreement that could reshape their economic and geopolitical engagement.
According to statement issued by the Ministry of External Affairs on Thursday, the visiting leaders will also co-chair the 16th India-EU Summit on January 27.
The Ministry stated that President Costa and President von der Leyen will meet President Draupadi Murmu, and hold restricted and delegation level talks with Prime Minister Modi.
“An India-EU Business Forum is also expected to be organised on the sidelines of the India-EU Summit,” the statement further reads. “India and European Union are strategic partners since 2004. The 15th India-EU Summit was held virtually on July 15, 2020. Bilateral ties have expanded and deepened across a wide range of areas, particularly following the historic visit of EU College of Commissioners to India in February 2025. Participation of EU leaders as chief guests at the 77th Republic Day and the 16th India-EU Summit will further deepen the India-EU Strategic Partnership and advance collaboration in priority areas of mutual interest.”
The visit of the two leaders comes as India and the EU are in the final stretch of negotiations for a long-pending free trade agreement (FTA).
Though there has been no official confirmation from the Indian side as yet, the Euractiv news website reported that von der Leyen told Members of the European Parliament (MEPs) in a meeting behind closed doors on Wednesday that the EU is set to sign an FTA with India this month that excludes agriculture.
The report, citing sources inside the room, stated that von der Leyen said during a meeting with her centre-right European People’s Party (EPP) Group that the deal would be a “massive signal” for EU trade relations, despite the carve-out, adding that it had been “clear from the very beginning” that agriculture would not be included in the final package.
In October last year, Commerce Secretary Rajesh Agrawal had stated that the talks are in their final stages and “very well” advanced, with remaining issues being addressed. Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal’s visit to Brussels on January 8-9 this year focused on expediting the deal, signalling strong political intent from both sides to conclude the pact soon.
Discussions in Brussels also covered safeguards for farmers and micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs), underlining efforts to balance liberalisation with domestic protections. Germany’s Chancellor Friedrich Merz, during his visit to India earlier this week, publicly floated the possibility of signing the FTA by late January 2026, coinciding with the India-EU summit and when the EU leaders attend India’s Republic Day parade.
If concluded, this pact would become one of the largest and most consequential trade agreements in the world, covering nearly 1.9 billion people and a combined GDP exceeding $22 trillion.
India and the EU began formal talks on a comprehensive FTA more than a decade ago. After initial rounds in the late 2000s and early 2010s, negotiations slowed significantly due to disagreements over market access, regulatory standards and other sensitive sectors. Talks were formally revitalised in June 2022 and have since progressed through multiple negotiation rounds covering market access, services, rules of origin, regulatory cooperation and non-tariff barriers.
The EU consistently ranks as India’s largest trading partner for goods and services. Indian exporters would gain preferential access to a market of over 450 million consumers with high purchasing power. European companies would benefit from India’s growing markets in services, technology, and manufacturing.
A comprehensive pact could spur greater European investment into India’s infrastructure, green energy and industrial sectors, and expand Indian services and digital exports into Europe. A comprehensive pact could spur greater European investment into India’s infrastructure, green energy and industrial sectors, and expand Indian services and digital exports into Europe.
According to Robinder Sachdev, president of the New Delhi-based Imagindia think tank, in the big picture, Europe should look at India as the fourth pole of its foreign policy doctrine.
“Europe traditionally looks at three poles for its economic, security and geopolitical relationships,” Sachdev said. “The first is the US for security and trade and business. The second is Russia for energy and resources. And the third pole is China as a market and factory for Europe.”
He said that the time has come now, given the new world matrix that is under construction in the 21st century, that Europe looks at India as the fourth pole for its economic, social, and geopolitical needs and alignments.
“It is high time that Europe took proactive steps to formulate a four-pole global strategy,” Sachdev said. “This will be mutually beneficial both for Europe and India.”
He further stated that though the proposed FTA is good step, there is much more that the EU can do to widen its relationship with India across all domains, be it trade, social sectors wherein India can complement Europe’s changing demographics, and geopolitical positionings in the new world matrix.
According to C Uday Bhaskar, strategic affairs expert and the Director of the New Delhi-based Society for Policy Studies think tank, if signed, the India-EU FTA will stand out as a strategically vital trade agreement for Delhi in a fragmented global economy and US President Donald Trump’s tariff intimidation.
“Presuming it is concluded on balanced terms in the coming days/weeks, it could significantly accelerate India’s export-led growth, attract substantial FDI, and elevate bilateral ties to a new level – far more impactful than many of India’s recent bilateral deals like with the UK, EFTA and Australia,” Bhaskar said. “The EU as a collective is the second largest GDP after the US.”
To sum up, the upcoming visit of Costa and von der Leyen is not just a diplomatic event – it is a geopolitical milestone. It signals that India and the EU are entering a new era of strategic and economic partnership, driven by converging interests in security, trade, and global governance. With the FTA on the horizon, this visit could well be remembered as the moment when India and Europe decided to shape the global order together, rather than react to it separately.