China is too complex and powerful for the European Union to handle, and India is turning out to be the most suitable to counterbalance Beijing’s rise.

The 12th India-EU Summit is a reflection of how Europe and the EU have come a long way in overcoming hesitations and treating India as an equal partner.

India is emerging as a dependable partner for the EU, even though Europe and New Delhi continue to have differences over Russia on the Ukraine war. Europe’s stand on Russia since 2022 is often hypocritical and has rightly been called out by India.

Yet the EU, in particular, continues to pursue an agenda ignoring the realities on the ground. The US is in regular dialogue with the Kremlin to end the war on mutually agreeable terms, and Europe may just be sidelined when the deal is reached.

Certain European leaders, including Giorgia Meloni, Italy’s Prime Minister, and more recently French President Emmanuel Macron, have taken a more realistic view of the situation. Accommodating Russia in the European security architecture that ensures strategic stability on the continent should be the mantra going forward. New Delhi has no illusion about the prevailing situation, and it would be prudent if Europe takes cognizance of India’s suggestions and takes into account the concept of strategic autonomy and geopolitics that shape New Delhi’s Russia strategy.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi has managed to withstand immense pressure since 2022 while pursuing a policy focused on India’s national interests and multipolarity.

Strategic Autonomy

In fact, the concepts of strategic autonomy and multipolarity shaped India’s approach in concluding the Strategic Defence Partnership (SDP) with the EU. For India, the idea is to diversify its defence partnerships even as the EU as an entity seeks to create an architecture that acts as a deterrent at a time when the US has been blunt in demanding that the NATO members spend their own budget to strengthen their military mechanism.

For far too long, Europe enjoyed the sun under the US security umbrella. Reality is dawning now.

Diversifying defence partnerships will also boost India’s defence industry and the private players that are coming up in this sector. The Indian government has been encouraging the defence industry, both public and private sectors, to scout for defence export destinations.

Strategic Defence Partnership (SDP)

The SDP with Europe will provide this opportunity. Indian defence industry players dealing with ammunition have had success in European markets, and SDP may open doors for supplies in other sectors as well.  

The genesis of SDP was laid last year. The India-EU security and defence ties have deepened significantly in 2025, marked by the Leaders’ Statement from the February College of Commissioners’ visit to India, which agreed to explore an SDP and included discussions between Andrius Kubilius, EU Commissioner for Defence and Space, and Sanjay Seth, India’s Minister of State for Defence.

This momentum continued with a December 2025 delegation from the Society of Indian Defence Manufacturers visiting Brussels to engage with the EU Commissioner, fostering industrial cooperation.

EU Political And Security Committee

In September 2025, the EU Political and Security Committee - representing all 27 member states - made its first-ever visit to Asia, holding high-level meetings in India with Vikram Misri, Foreign Secretary, and other senior officials to advance strategic dialogue. Complementing these efforts, joint naval exercises have strengthened maritime security cooperation, including in the Indian Ocean in June 2025. Prior to that, the exercise at the Gulf of Guinea in October 2023, and the Gulf of Aden in June 2021, alongside collaborative escort operations for humanitarian assistance near Somalia in 2018 and 2019, are also noteworthy.

Later in April 2025, Vice Admiral Ignacio Villaneuva Serrano, Operation Commander of Eunavfor Atlanta, visited India. With limited presence in the Indo-Pacific region, India is Europe’s suitable partner to expand its outreach in the region where Chinese presence looms large.

Defence Sector

Only a few would have imagined even half a decade back that India would emerge as a defence supplier to Europe, which has been at the forefront of innovation in this industry. France, Germany, Italy, Sweden, and the Czech Republic have created state-of-the-art defence hardware and have been global exporters, including India. 

Yet in a reversal of role of sorts, Europe is courting India, acknowledging success in India’s defence industry. Simultaneously, this is a golden opportunity for the Indian defence industry to widen its export destination that would have requirements for decades to come.      

(The writer is a commentator on geopolitics and geoeconomics. Views are personal).