New Delhi: European Council President Antonio Luis Santos da Costa and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen will be the Chief Guests at the 77th Republic Day celebrations. They will pay a three-day State Visit to India from January 25 to 27. During the visit, the leaders will also co-chair the 16th India-EU Summit to be held on January 27. The invitation extended by the Government of India to the Heads of the European Union, illustrates the strategic importance asserted by New Delhi to the European Union to foresee a strong partnership across the geopolitical spectrum.
The Heads of the European Union as the Chief Guest for the Republic Day celebrations, will provide a platform to further consolidate solid relations between India and the EU. This is also deemed as a strategic stroke by India, to ink comprehensive relations with the European Union in terms of trade, investment, business etc. amidst spiking uncertainities and challenges in a fragmented geopolitical landscape.
The President of the European Council and the European commission along with the delegation, will meet President Droupadi Murmu. They will also hold restricted and delegation-level talks with Prime Minister Narendra Modi. An India-EU Business Forum is also expected to be organised on the sidelines of the India-EU Summit. India and the European Union have been strategic partners since 2004. Bilateral ties have expanded and deepened across a wide range of areas, particularly following the historic visit of the EU College of Commissioners to India in February 2025, the Ministry of External Affairs.
The release said that the 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. President Costa and President Von der Leyen are visiting India on the invitation of PM Modi. The visit of two leaders comes amid negotiations between India and the European Union for a Free Trade Agreement(FTA), which are at an advanced stage and is expected to be sealed during the upcoming visit.
Commerce Secretary Rajesh Agrawal said that as many as 20 out of 24 chapters under the ambitious India-EU FTA have been finalised, with a few issues remaining under ongoing negotiations. He said both parties are “virtually engaged on a day-to-day basis” and are trying to see if we can meet the timeline before the leaders can meet. The latest anticipated visit by the Presidents of the European Union will herald a new and solid chapter in strengthening the India-EU partnership in a comprehensive way across the geopolitical spectrum.
(With Inputs from ANI)
