India, EU seal historic Free Trade Agreement, ‘Mother of All Deals’
India and Europe on Tuesday announced sealing of an ambitious free trade agreement — billed as “mother of all deals” — that came against the backdrop of a fractious global environment and trade disruptions largely caused by Washington’s policy on tariffs. Today, India has concluded the biggest free trade agreement (FTA) in its history with the European Union, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said after holding summit talks with the 27-nation bloc’s top leaders, Ursula von der Leyen and Antonio Costa.
“This is not just a trade agreement. This is a new blueprint for shared prosperity,” Modi said in his media statement.
Today is a day that will be remembered forever, marked indelibly in our shared history.
European Council President António Costa and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and I are delighted to announce the conclusion of the historic India-EU Free Trade Agreement.… pic.twitter.com/yaSlPm2b2L
— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) January 27, 2026
The two sides also inked a strategic defence partnership pact and a mobility agreement. The Prime Minister Modi said the India-EU partnership will help the world. European Council President Costa said India and the EU began a “new chapter” in their relations in sectors such as trade, security, and people-to-people ties.
“Trade agreements reinforce a rules-based economic order and promote shared prosperity. That’s why today’s free trade agreement is of historic importance. It is one of the most ambitious agreements ever concluded,” he said. “We delivered the mother of all deals,” Von der Leyen said.
The long-awaited FTA is set to significantly expand the overall trajectory of two-way engagement as it will open up new opportunities for cooperation in diverse areas. The EU and India had first launched negotiations for the FTA in 2007, before the talks were suspended in 2013 due to a gap in ambition. The negotiations were relaunched in June 2022.
The EU, as a bloc, is India’s largest trading partner in goods. For the financial year 2024-25, India’s total trade in goods with the EU was worth about USD 136 billion, with exports around USD 76 billion and imports at USD 60 billion. The broad focus of the summit was on trade, defence and security, climate change, critical technologies, and strengthening the rules-based global order. India and the European Union have been strategic partners since 2004. The proposed Security and Defence Partnership (SDP) will facilitate deeper defence and security cooperation between the two sides.
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