Focus on defence and AI, India, EU hold 1st strategic dialogue

India and the European Union (EU) held their inaugural strategic dialogue in Brussels, covering a wide spectrum of issues, including defence, maritime security, space and emerging technologies like artificial intelligence.

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EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas, addressing the media alongside External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar, called India and the EU “natural partners”, citing their shared values as democracies and market economies. Jaishankar posted on X about the meeting, describing it as a “productive discussion on deepening cooperation in defence, maritime security, counter-terrorism, cyber and AI, space and defence industry collaborations”.

India also shared its views on the Indo-Pacific, the evolving situation in Europe and West Asia. “As political democracies, market economies and pluralistic societies, India and the EU share many convergences in an increasingly multipolar world,” Jaishankar noted.

Kallas emphasised that together, India and the EU represent a quarter of the world’s population and GDP. “By working together, we have great potential to make a global impact,” she said. The dialogue, she added, lays the groundwork for closer engagement on cybersecurity, defence and space cooperation.

As part of the outcomes, the two sides will initiate a formal dialogue on space issues, focusing on satellite navigation and space security.

Earlier, Jaishankar met European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and thanked her for strongly condemning the April 22 terrorist attack in Pahalgam and for reaffirming the EU’s solidarity with India in the fight against terrorism. He also discussed enhancing India-EU cooperation in trade, technology, connectivity and security.

The EU and its 27 member states have unequivocally condemned the Pahalgam attack and backed India’s response, further reinforcing the growing strategic alignment between the two sides.