A pivotal moment

Free trade agreement with EU remains a long haul

The summit between the leaders of the 27 member states of the European Union (EU) and the Indian prime minister this weekend was described in the joint statement that followed the meeting as “a pivotal moment”. Usually, such phrasing is diplomatic exaggeration, but on this occasion there might actually be reason to suppose that the India-EU relationship has reached an inflection point. For one, the atmospherics around this meeting, and the fact that it was supposed to be in person before the devastating second wave of the pandemic hit India, are themselves a reflection of new energy in the partnership.