Presidents of European Commission, European Council to be Chief Guests at This Year’s Republic Day Parade

Recent Delhi: European Council President Antonio Luis Santos da Costa and European Rate President Ursula von der Leyen can pay a 3-day Command Divulge over with to India from January 25 to 27 and have to unruffled be Chief Company at the 77th Republic Day celebrations.

One day of the discuss to, the leaders can even co-chair the 16th India-EU Summit to be held on January 27.

They’re going to meet President Droupadi Murmu and retain restricted and delegation-level talks with Top Minister Narendra Modi. An India-EU Alternate Forum might well well be expected to be organised on the sidelines of the India-EU Summit.

India and the European Union were strategic partners since 2004. The 15th India-EU Summit was held nearly on July 15, 2020. Bilateral ties like expanded and deepened in some unspecified time in the future of a big selection of areas, in particular following the historical discuss to of the EU Faculty of Commissioners to India in February this 300 and sixty five days, the Ministry of Exterior Affairs stated in a release.

The discharge stated that the participation of EU leaders as Chief Company at the 77th Republic Day and the 16th India-EU Summit will further deepen the India-EU Strategic Partnership and advance collaboration in precedence areas of mutual interest.

President Costa and President von der Leyen are visiting India on invitation of PM Modi.

The discuss to of two leaders comes amid negotiations between India and the European Union for a Free Alternate Settlement, that are at a worldly stage.

Commerce Secretary Rajesh Agrawal stated Thursday that as many as 20 out of 24 chapters under the ambitious India-EU FTA were finalised, with about a issues ultimate under ongoing negotiations.

He stated each events are “virtually engaged on a day-to-day basis”, and strive to worth if we are in a position to fulfill the timeline sooner than the leaders can meet, he stated.

“We have closed 20 out of 24 chapters completely, there are few issues which are still ongoing negotiations, which we are virtually engaged on a day-to-day basis, and we are trying to see if we can meet the timeline before our leaders can meet,” he stated.

Agrawal stated that each events strive to worth that “we can meet that (January deadline) because that’s a good occasion when our leaders are meeting, but we can only make efforts.” “As I told you, coming near is not good enough,” he stated, on the opposite hand, including a caveat.

Union Minister of Commerce and Industry, Piyush Goyal, concluded a two-day discuss to to Brussels earlier this month, marking a significant step ahead within the India-EU Free Alternate Settlement (FTA) negotiations.