Skip to content
Adopted text

EU-India relations

TA-9-2024-0033 · P9_TA(2024)0033 · PE753.444

Official HTML ↗ PDF DOCX
✦ In shortFull text
✦ In short · AI summary of this text, generated 26 Sept 2026

Written by a language model from the full text only; every figure comes from the text. The paragraph links open the paragraph a statement rests on — check the text itself before relying on it.

Parliament's recommendation to the Council, Commission and VP/HR sets out how EU-India relations should be deepened under the strategic partnership and the Roadmap to 2025. It asks for more cooperation on foreign and security policy, including maritime security, counter-terrorism, space, disarmament and coordination in the UN, WTO and G20. It urges India to reduce its military and energy dependency on Russia and to join condemnation of Russia's war against Ukraine. It calls for human rights and democratic values to be placed at the heart of EU engagement with India, with a strategy and action plan. It asks for progress on trade, climate, energy, digital, health and mobility cooperation, including the free trade agreement and the Trade and Technology Council.

Key points

  1. Recommends that the Council, Commission and VP/HR broaden and deepen EU-India relations as strategic partners and pursue a 'Team Europe' approach.
  2. Asks for tangible advances on climate, digitalisation, research, connectivity, trade, security and human rights, and for publicly available criteria to measure progress on the Roadmap to 2025.
  3. Calls for preparations for a revamped partnership based on freedom, democracy, pluralism, the rule of law, equality, human rights and sustainable development.
  4. Wants parliamentary oversight, structured inter-parliamentary dialogue, an EU-India Civil Society Platform and an EU-India Youth Summit.
  5. Calls for annual bilateral security dialogues, closer military-to-military cooperation and emphasis on the EU-India Counter Terrorism Dialogue.
  6. Asks for expanded maritime security cooperation, including freedom of navigation, secure sea lines of communication and a possible joint regional maritime capacity-building programme.
  7. Urges India to join condemnation of Russia's war against Ukraine, halt joint military exercises and defence cooperation with Russia, and stop purchases of Russian crude oil and diamonds.
  8. Calls for monitoring of Kashmir, support for India-Pakistan dialogue and peaceful resolution of the India-China border dispute.
  9. Condemns violence and divisive policies, urges protection of religious minorities and calls for action on recommendations of India's Universal Periodic Review.
  10. Asks India to protect freedom of expression, media freedom and the independence of the judiciary, and to stop misuse of laws against civil society and human rights defenders.
  11. Calls for ending caste-based discrimination, a death penalty moratorium, and upgraded bi-annual EU-India Human Rights Dialogue with civil society input.
  12. Asks for human rights and sustainability impact assessments before any free trade agreement, and for cooperation on climate, energy, digital, health and mobility.

Who is affected

  • The Council, Commission and VP/HR, who are asked to act on the recommendations.
  • India, which is urged to act on human rights, Russia ties, trade and regional disputes.
  • EU and Indian civil society, trade unions and human rights defenders, for whom consultation and support are sought.
  • EU-based companies, which must ensure operations comply with EU legislation and stop circumventing sanctions.

Figures and deadlines

  • EU-India Strategic Partnership established in 2004.
  • EU-India Roadmap to 2025, whose implementation is to be reviewed.
  • India's parliamentary elections in May and June 2024; European Parliament elections in June 2024.
  • India surpassed China as the most populous country in 2023.
  • India's G20 Presidency in 2023, UN Security Council membership in 2021-2022 and UN Human Rights Council membership in 2019-2022 and 2022-2024.
  • India-EU Trade and Technology Council established on 6 February 2023.
  • Women's Reservation Bill reserves one third of seats in national and state parliaments for women.
  • India's energy needs are set to more than double in the next 20 years.