EU vows to forge closer ties with India despite 'problematic' Russia factor

The European Union has taken a caller measurement to fortify and grow ties with India astatine a clip erstwhile accepted alliances and time-honoured principles are nether terrible strain, prompting an aggravated hunt for alternate partnerships.

In a five-pillar strategy unveiled connected Wednesday, the European Commission outlined a broad imaginativeness for person bilateral relations encompassing an ever-widening scope of topics, including sustainable fuels, greenish hydrogen, captious earthy materials, artificial intelligence, precocious microchips, cybersecurity, situation management, defence policy and ineligible migration, paving the mode for an EU-India acme successful aboriginal 2026.

"Closer EU-India practice is much important than ever," the papers reads.

The timing of the presumption was noteworthy: conscionable this week, a tiny contingent of Indian troops took portion successful large-scale associated subject exercises with Russia and Belarus, known arsenic Zapad 2025, adjacent the borderline with Poland and Lithuania.

India's information followed the yearly gathering of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) earlier this month, wherever Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi was seen sharing candid moments with Russia's Vladimir Putin and China's Xi Jinping.

Both events reflected New Delhi's enduring relationship with Moscow, which the West has agelong seen with suspicion. Brussels has accused India of providing a backmost doorway for sanctions circumvention, astir notably by refining and reselling Russian crude.

But amid geopolitical turmoil and economical uncertainty, the EU has concluded it has much to summation than to suffer from deeper practice with India, the world's astir populous state and a large subordinate successful the highly strategical Indo-Pacific region.

"We are surviving successful these precise turbulent times, and we request to physique partnerships. And, you know, the question is ever whether we permission this void to beryllium filled by somebody, truthful we effort to capable it ourselves," High Representative Kaja Kallas said during the presentation.

Kallas faced repeated questions astir the Russia factor, which she admitted was "problematic" and a root of disagreements wrong the College of Commissioners.

"If you privation person ties with us, past wherefore enactment successful exercises that are an existential menace to us?" she added, referring to Zapad 2025. "We are not taking this lightly."

Yet, Kallas refrained from issuing an ultimatum that would unit New Delhi to prime a side.

"Whether it's imaginable to wholly decouple India from Russia, considering their past arsenic well, I don't deliberation we person illusions regarding this," she told reporters.

The diplomatic momentum faces a important trial successful the negotiations for an EU-India escaped commercialized deal, which the 2 sides person committed to concluding by the extremity of the year.

EU-India commerce has boomed successful caller years, but continues to beryllium saddled by friction points. For Brussels, it's protectionism. For New Delhi, it's clime and labour laws.

Donald Trump appears to beryllium a almighty information down the talks. Both the EU and India are grappling with the achy effects of his unilateral tariffs: the erstwhile has been saddled with a lopsided agreement, and the second has been slapped with 50% tariffs.

The tariff fallout, however, opens a invaluable model of opportunity: arsenic US-India relations plunge to an all-time low, EU-India relations are connected the rise.

"We are afloat alert of the tremendous imaginable for our communal trade," said Maroš Šefčovič, the European Commissioner for Trade, lasting adjacent to Kallas. "It's astir strategical choices. And clearly, India is simply a strategical partner, from immoderate space you would look astatine it."

Besides the escaped commercialized deal, the bloc has acceptable its sights connected different coveted deliverable: a ceremonial Security and Defence Partnership (SDP), which, if agreed, would beryllium the 3rd of its benignant with an Asian nation, aft Japan and South Korea.

Countries with an SDP tin enactment successful communal procurement nether SAFE, the EU's €150 cardinal programme to boost defence spending.

Broadening practice with Europe fits with India's multi-allignment overseas policy, which has allowed the state to make seemingly contradictory alliances based connected nationalist interests and presumption itself arsenic an influential dependable successful the Global South.

For Brussels, those credentials tin offset New Delhi's links to Moscow and Beijing.

"Multi-alligment goes some ways," said a elder EU official, speaking connected information of anonymity. "Sometimes, India acts against anti-Western sentiment, arsenic a mean dependable that doesn't subscribe to the anti-Western agenda. That's a utile thing."