The European Union and India have agreed to resume long-stalled talks on a free trade deal in an effort to strengthen their economic cooperation in the face of an increasingly assertive China.
The agreement was struck at a virtual summit between EU leaders and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday, aimed at rebooting relations and boosting cooperation across key fields including digitalization, health and climate change.
"Europe and India are the two largest democracies in the world and our joint strategy is vital,” Portuguese Prime Minister Antonio Costa, who holds the EU’s rotating presidency, said after the summit. "Working together we can resolve many global challenges: COVID today and also fighting climate change.”