India and the 27-member European Union (EU) on Tuesday inked a historic free trade agreement that will give a boost to bilateral trade and investment amid widespread tariffs imposed by the US under President Donald Trump’s regime.
The ‘mother of all deals’ was announced at a joint press conference by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, President of the European Council Antonio Costa and President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen following the conclusion of the 16th India-EU Summit in New Delhi today.
‘India and Europe have taken a major step forward today. The India-EU Free Trade Agreement opens new pathways for growth, investment and strategic cooperation,’ PM Modi said, adding the FTA will drive trade, investment and innovation, and strengthen the strategic relationship.
‘Today marks a historic moment as we open a new chapter in EU-India relations – on trade, security, and people-to-people ties. Our Summit sends a clear message: in a reshaping global order, the EU and India stand together as strategic, reliable partners,’ the President of the European Council said.
The European Commission President described the deal between Europe and India as historic.
Later in the evening, in a special gesture to express gratitude to all member countries of the EU, Prime Minister Modi posed on the social media platform X (formerly Twitter) in 24 official European Union languages.
The PM posted 24 separate messages on X, starting with the first one in English, which read:
“Conclusion of the India-EU Free Trade Agreement today marks a significant milestone in our relations. I thank all the leaders of Europe over the years for their constructive spirit and commitment in making this possible. This agreement will deepen economic ties, create opportunities for our people and strengthen the India-Europe partnership for a prosperous future.”
The posts in 23 other official EU languages can be read on the PM’s X account here.
Zaključenje Sporazuma o slobodnoj trgovini između Indije i Europske unije danas označava značajnu prekretnicu u našim odnosima. Zahvaljujem svim europskim čelnicima tijekom godina na njihovu konstruktivnom duhu i predanosti koji su omogućili ostvarenje ovoga sporazuma. Ovaj će…
— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) January 27, 2026
Der heutige Abschluss des Freihandelsabkommens zwischen Indien und der Europäischen Union stellt einen bedeutenden Meilenstein in unseren Beziehungen dar. Ich danke allen europäischen Führungspersönlichkeiten der vergangenen Jahre für ihren konstruktiven Geist und ihr Engagement,…
— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) January 27, 2026
It may be noted that the European Union has 24 official languages to reflect the bloc’s cultural and linguistic diversity. These languages are Bulgarian, Croatian, Czech, Danish, Dutch, English, Estonian, Finnish, French, German, Greek, Hungarian, Irish, Italian, Latvian, Lithuanian, Maltese, Polish, Portuguese, Romanian, Slovak, Slovenian, Spanish, and Swedish.
Among the 24 languages, all of which have equal status, English, French and German are the most used working languages within the bloc’s institutions.