India, European Union agree to broaden ties, launch trade, technology council
New Delhi, April 25
Despite not being on the same page regarding Russia’s aggression against Ukraine, India and the European Union (EU) on Monday decided to step up their ties by agreeing to launch a joint trade and technology council.
It will be the second such council involving the 27-nation EU after its first one with the US.
The EU-India body will be a strategic coordination mechanism to tackle challenges at the nexus of trade, trusted technology and security, said External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar at the opening session of the Raisina Dialogue, following a meeting between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and visiting European Union Commission President Ursula von der Leyen.
The EU has already announced that it would begin negotiations for comprehensive trade and investment agreements.
The two leaders deliberated on several key issues, including the situation in Ukraine. The visiting EU leader also called on President Ram Nath Kovind.
PM Modi said he was delighted to hold talks with Ursula von der Leyen and that both sides reviewed the “full range of India-EU ties, including economic and cultural linkages”. Speaking at the Raisina Dialogue and earlier at the headquarters of the International Solar Alliance (ISA), von der Leyen brought Russia into the conversation, saying Europe will ensure that Russia’s “unprovoked and unjustified” aggression against Ukraine “will be a strategic failure”.
“The world’s response to Russia’s aggression will decide the future of both the international system and global economy,” she said at the Raisina Dialogue.
At the ISA headquarters, she said Russia’s war in Ukraine was a stark reminder that the dependency on Russian fossil fuels was not sustainable and pitched for a deeper cooperation between India and the EU to expand the use of clean energy.
The EU Commission President also referred to the “no-limits” friendship between Russia and China. “Russia and China have forged a seemingly unrestrained pact. They have declared that the friendship between them has no limits,” she said.
On India, she described the relationship as more important than ever. “For the EU, the partnership with India is one of our most important relationships for the coming decade and strengthening this partnership is a priority,” she said.
Focus on clean energy
Amid Ukraine conflict, EU says dependency on Russian fossil fuels is not sustainable. It is looking to diversify away from fossil fuels and invest heavily in clean renewable energy. Europe thus wants cooperation with India not only on solar, but also on green hydrogen.
Banking on potential
India is technologically a powerhouse and in the trade sector, we need to unleash an enormous amount of untapped potential. — Ursula von der Leyen, EU Commission Prez
