EU leaders to grace India’s 2026 Republic Day amid trade deal push
India has invited two top European Union leaders as guests of honour for its 2026 Republic Day celebrations. EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and Council President António Costa will attend the January 26 event in New Delhi. Their presence highlights growing ties as both sides push to finalise a long-awaited free-trade agreement by late January 2026.
The EU and India had originally aimed to wrap up trade talks by the end of 2025. But sticking points, including India’s opposition to the EU’s carbon border tax and steel safeguard measures, have delayed progress. EU Trade Commissioner Maroš Šefčovič visited New Delhi in late December 2025 to tackle these hurdles, later calling the negotiations 'extremely challenging'. The EU hopes to replicate its recent trade deal with Indonesia, finalised in September 2025.
The trade deal’s completion would open new economic opportunities for both sides. Negotiators face a tight deadline, with key meetings scheduled in early January. The outcome will shape future EU-India relations and trade policies.
Read also:
- American teenagers taking up farming roles previously filled by immigrants, a concept revisited from 1965's labor market shift.
- Weekly affairs in the German Federal Parliament (Bundestag)
- Landslide claims seven lives, injures six individuals while they work to restore a water channel in the northern region of Pakistan
- Escalating conflict in Sudan has prompted the United Nations to announce a critical gender crisis, highlighting the disproportionate impact of the ongoing violence on women and girls.
