In a world increasingly marked by disorder and divergence, as foreign policy mavens cast about for new policy initiatives, the India-Europe relationship stands as a compelling case for diplomatic renewal — rooted in civilisational depth, yet animated by contemporary relevance. If history has often rendered them distant participants in each other’s geopolitical imagination, the present moment demands — and enables — a more purposeful engagement.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s G-7 diplomacy and External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar’s renewed focus on Europe reflect a conscious pivot towards a continent in flux. This is not merely a recognition of Europe’s enduring economic weight or cultural capital; it is an astute reading of the evolving global chessboard, where yesterday’s alliances are fraying, and new solidarities are emerging across the hemispheres.
An order upended, a partnership emerging
The transatlantic realm, long anchored by American leadership, finds itself adrift amidst United States President Donald Trump’s iconoclasm. His transactional world view, scepticism towards the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, disdain for traditional allies, and dalliance with adversaries such as Russian President Vladimir Putin have unnerved Washington’s most steadfast partners. The G-7, once the de facto board of directors for global governance, convened last month not in consensus, but in contention.
For Canada, the United Kingdom, Germany, and France — each recalibrating their foreign policies — the strategic logic of looking eastward has grown sharper. Canada, disentangling itself from overdependence on the U.S., now seeks deeper integration with Europe and emerging powers such as India (the hiccup over its mollycoddling of Khalistani extremists notwithstanding). The U.K., shedding its Brexit-era illusions, embraces renewed continental ties. And Germany, awakened from strategic somnolence, has embarked on a path of defence investment and industrial reinvention. In this milieu, Europe is striving not simply to stay relevant but to become a pole of power in its own right.
The rhetoric of “strategic autonomy”, once French fancy, is now echoed in Berlin, Warsaw, and Brussels alike. From French President Emmanuel Macron’s nuclear umbrella to Germany’s constitutional recalibration for military spending, and the Weimar Triangle’s assertiveness in central Europe, the project of European reinvention is well underway.
India’s external engagement, long characterised by prudence and non-alignment, is morphing into a more assertive posture of “multi-alignment”. In a world veering toward bipolar rivalry between the U.S. and China, India and Europe, both aspirational middle powers, find common cause in championing a multipolar order that is anchored in international law, inclusive institutions and plural values. This convergence plays out on several fronts. The India-European Union (EU) engagement now unfolds on two levels. Institutionally, the EU and India are expanding their long-standing dialogue in areas of shared and exclusive competencies — from trade and technology to security and climate change. Bilaterally, ties with major member states — France, Germany, Italy and, increasingly, the Nordic and Eastern European nations — are acquiring greater strategic depth.
Economic ties as a corridor of opportunity
Few statistics capture the potential of this moment better than the startling rise in bilateral trade and investment. Between 2015 and 2022, EU foreign direct investment in India grew by 70%, with France’s investments alone skyrocketing by 373%. In the last three years, EU imports from India have doubled, underscoring New Delhi’s growing economic magnetism. Yet, India and Europe are still only scratching the surface.
The much-anticipated India-EU Trade and Investment Agreements must now be fast-tracked with an “early harvest” accord that shows some sensitivity to India’s green transition. The European Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism, laudable in spirit, must be reinterpreted through the lens of equity. Climate ambition must never become climate protectionism. The India-Middle East-Europe Economic Corridor (IMEC) can become a modern Silk Road linking geographies not only in trade, but also in enterprise, energy, and innovation. It is an answer to the Indo-Pacific’s demand for infrastructure that is transparent, sustainable and sovereign in spirit.
Perhaps the most exciting frontier lies in technology. India and Europe both view digital architecture not as a proprietary domain of Big Tech but as public infrastructure for the global good. As Mr. Modi observed at the AI Action Summit, the partnership can span the entire digital lifecycle — from innovation to governance, from standards to regulation. Europe’s leadership in deep tech, digital manufacturing, and semiconductors dovetails with India’s dynamism in software, digital public goods and scalable platforms. Together, they can lead in clean energy innovation, biotechnology, ocean sustainability, food security and resilient health-care systems.
To harness this, both sides must invest in human mobility. A comprehensive mobility agreement for students, scientists and scholars will enrich talent pools, ease Indian unemployment and fertilise bilateral innovation. In the age of ideas, cross-border thinkers are as valuable as cross-border capital.
Strategic alignment now extends to defence and counter-terrorism. Europe remains an important source of armaments for India, and as both sides seek self-reliance — India under Atmanirbhar Bharat, Europe through ReArm 2025 — there is scope for unprecedented co-development and technology transfer. Maritime cooperation, cyber security, space collaboration, and joint responses to terrorism offer a template for trust. Europe must also adopt a firmer line on Pakistan’s enabling of Islamist extremism — an issue that has scarred both sides. Technical cooperation is not enough; political will must follow.
In a world where great powers often behave as if might is right, middle powers such as India and Europe must act as custodians of a rules-based order. Not as relics of a liberal utopia, but as realists pursuing stability through coalitions, not coercion. Their shared belief in multilateralism, in resisting hegemonic binaries and in empowering the Global South with inclusive frameworks, sets them apart from more prescriptive paradigms. This ethic must shape their joint leadership in forums from the United Nations to the World Trade Organization (WTO), and from the Quad (Australia, India, Japan, U.S.) to the Artificial Intelligence (AI) governance tables.
Changing minds, not just policies
Finally, let us not underestimate the power of perception. Public sentiment, media narratives and political attention must align with strategic intent. Relationships flourish not merely through summits and statistics, but through empathy, imagination and sustained effort. Europe must move beyond stereotypes of India as a reluctant partner; India must appreciate Europe’s complex transitions with greater nuance. The Raisina Dialogue in Marseille (June 2025), the President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen’s symbolic visit to Delhi (February 2025), and India’s diplomatic investment in the Mediterranean and Nordic regions, are all promising steps.
If the last decade taught us that history has a sense of humour (think of our relations with the two iterations of the Trump Administration), the coming one demands we have a sense of purpose. India and Europe, long circling one another, must now walk in step knowing that their shared values and strategic compulsions form a partnership not of convenience, but conviction. For in each other, they may just find not a mirror, but a window to a more stable, inclusive and equitable world.
Shashi Tharoor is a former Under-Secretary General of the United Nations, a fourth-term Member of Parliament (Congress), Lok Sabha, for Thiruvananthapuram, Chairman of the Parliamentary Standing Committee on External Affairs, and the Sahitya Akademi Award-winning author of 27 books, including ‘Pax Indica: India and the World of the 21st Century’ (2012)