View from India Newsletter India-EU trade deal: Pragmatic move or geopolitical statement? Today World News

(This article is part of the View From India newsletter curated by The Hindu’s foreign affairs experts. To get the newsletter in your inbox every Monday, subscribe here.)

The India-EU Free Trade Agreement (FTA), signed on January 27, 2026, has been hailed by both sides as the “mother of all deals”. The agreement came after almost two decades of irregular negotiations between India and the EU, with the discussions picking up pace in the last six to nine months.

Broadly speaking, the trade deal will open up the Indian market to the 27 member states of the bloc and potentially ease market access for key European products. Once the FTA is ratified, Indian products are set to become more competitive in the EU market, as the deal would see the EU drop tariffs on 99.5% of items India exports to the region, with most tariffs going down to 0% soon after the agreement comes into effect. In return, European products, ranging from wines to luxury cars are set to become cheaper in India. Read our Economic and Business Editor T.C.A. Sharad Raghavan’s comprehensive report here:

Why is the FTA being seen as the biggest trade deal in India’s history? What does it really entail? Watch this video to understand its significance:

Some EU leaders and western media outlets have termed the FTA more of a geopolitical statement, aimed at US President Donald Trump, rather than a mere trade-centric agreement. Did the EU-India FTA get fast-tracked because of [concerns over] U.S. measures like tariffs? T.C.A. Sharad Raghavan and Suhasini Haidar spoke to Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal to hear the government’s perspective. “If we have to be a developed and prosperous country, we have to open and engage with the world. No country in the world has become a developed country by shutting its doors or looking inward,” he told The Hindu. Read the full interview here:

What is the geopolitical context to the India-EU FTA? Have “Trumperican trade threats” pushed New Delhi and Brussels closer to each other, and can this FTA help them chart a new world order together? Suhasini Haidar examines in this video:

The Hindu editorial on the FTA offered a detailed analysis of what in the deal works in India’s favour and the areas that spark concern. “With the FTA document to be translated into 27 European languages before it can be cleared by each country and finally the European Parliament, actual implementation will likely take a while. India must push for as speedy a clearing process as possible. Otherwise, the gains so painstakingly bargained for will be too late to offset the U.S. tariff pain,” it contended. Read the editorial here:

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