EU-India Relations — Keeping up the Momentum Needed for a Vital Strategic Partnership

Análise aprofundada 06-09-2016

Relations between the EU and India seem to be back on track since leaders met in Brussels, on 30 March 2016, for their first summit in four years. They endorsed the EU-India Agenda for Action 2020 and their water, clean energy and climate partnerships; they welcomed the negotiations on a broad-based Bilateral Trade and Investment Agreement (BTIA) and agreed that the fact that they are currently stalled should not stand in the way of the overall development of the relationship. They set a common agenda on migration and mobility and they adopted a joint declaration on counter-terrorism. It is vital to keep up the momentum created at the summit. The strategic relationship is vital to both sides: India is Asia’s third-largest economy and the world’s fastest growing economy and the EU is India’s biggest trading partner. The EU is also the largest investor in India, with foreign direct investment stock valued at EUR 38.5 billion in 2014, and is the primary destination for Indian foreign investment.