EU, India to set up council to broaden ties amid Ukraine war

Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the European Commission's President Ursula Von der Leyen on Monday agreed to launch the India-EU Trade and Technology Council to bring about high-level coordination on intersecting aspects of trade, technology and security and provide political steer needed for in-depth strategic engagement.

Modi and Von der Leyen met in New Delhi and reviewed the progress in the India-EU Strategic Partnership, including the forthcoming re-commencement of negotiations on a Free Trade Agreement and an Investment Agreement.

India and the EU earlier agreed to formally restart negotiations on the trade and investment agreements by next June.

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The prime minister and the European Commission's president on Monday expressed hope that the early conclusion of negotiations would unlock the full potential of bilateral trade and economic relations. They noted the strong synergies between India-EU connectivity partnership announced last year and the EU’s new global gateway strategy and also agreed to fast-track its implementation.

“The EU (European Union) has only one Trade and Technology Council so far – with the US, and I think it is telling that we now establish the second one with India,” Von der Leyen said after her meeting with Modi. “Also, because India is technologically a powerhouse, and in the trade sector we need to unleash an enormous amount of untapped potential”.

The Trade and Technology Council will provide political-level oversight of all aspects of the India-EU relationship and to ensure coordination between different areas of cooperation.

The prime minister and the European Commission president had an extensive discussion on climate-related issues, including on possibilities of collaboration between India and the EU in areas like Green Hydrogen. They also discussed the continuing challenges of the Covid-19 and stressed efforts to ensure equitable access to vaccines and therapeutics to all parts of the world.

“Delighted to hold talks with (the) President of @EU_Commission @vonderleyen earlier today. We reviewed the full range of India-EU ties including economic and cultural linkages,” Modi tweeted after his meeting with Von der Leyen.

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