India-European Union relationship consequential for world also: EAM Jaishankar

India-European Union relationship consequential for world also: EAM Jaishankar

NEW DELHI: External affairs minister S Jaishankar on Thursday attended the Europe Day celebrations held in Delhi as the chief guest. While describing the relationship between India and the European Union as “consequential for the world as well,” external affairs minister said the EU is not only “our largest economic partner,” but ties run “very deep, spanning many domains.”

Extending felicitations to EU’s ambassador to India, Herve Delphin, Jaishankar said, “I think today the relationship between India and the European Union is not only consequential for each one of us but also for the world as well.

“It is an entity with which we have, really, a very deep relationship spanning many domains…not just in the relationship between New Delhi and Brussels but in the regional and sub-regional formats in which we engage each other and in a range of institutions that we both are members of and where we collaborate with each other. And of course, an important aspect of this relationship is the economic partnership,” Jaishankar mentioned during his speech at the Europe Day celebrations held in New Delhi.

The event was held to celebrate Europe Day, an annual occasion on May 9 that signifies peace and unity in Europe.

Jaishankar said that it is the need of the hour to have more “resilient and reliable’ supply chains.

He said, “A fact that we are one of, I think, your two partners for trade and technology council, that , in many ways underlines not just the present of our relationship and the importance as well.”

“When one looks at the challenges the world faces, the need for more resilient and reliable supply chains, the need for a stronger digital cooperation based on trust and transparency. In numerous respects, there exists a true need to strengthen the global economy. I am of the opinion that India and the European Union have the capability to provide support, particularly through joint endeavors between them, as highlighted by the EAM.

Recognising the contribution of the European Union to the India-Middle-East-Europe Economic Corridor (IMEC), Jaishankar said, “We certainly attach importance to it and look forward to taking it forward.”

“Among the welcome developments for us in recent years has been the greater interest that the EU, and individual European states, have taken in the Indo-Pacific. Many countries, and the EU, as a whole, today have an approach to the Indo-Pacific that we welcome very sincerely,” he said.

Recalling the G20 Summit which took place under the chairmanship of India in September last year, he said, “We also see today a much more serious engagement in the domain of security; it is for us a great pleasure to welcome, from time to time, the defence presence of Europe in this part of the world. As a country that chaired the G20, we very much appreciated the value and contribution that the EU, and individual European states made to the G20.”

“We value very much the invitation extended to us in G7 proceedings from time to time,” the minister noted.

Meanwhile, lauding the mutual ties, European Union envoy Herve Delphin said India is the country that has “gained tremendous importance for the EU,” and the partnership will “deepen further.”

“In this turbulent environment, there is one country, and one relationship that has gained tremendous importance for the EU, and it is India,” Delphin said during his speech at the event.

In March of this year, India and the European Free Trade Association (EFTA) signed a Trade and Economic Partnership Agreement (TEPA) with four European countries – Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway, and Switzerland.

EFTA has pledged to encourage investments to increase the foreign direct investment stock by $100 billion in India over the next 15 years and to support the creation of 1 million direct jobs in India.

(With inputs from agencies)

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