The 12th India-EU summit will take place on February 10, in New Delhi. The Indian delegation will be led by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Herman Van Rompuy, President of the European Council and Jose Manuel Barroso, President of the European Commission, will lead the European Union’s delegation.
“The Summit will provide an opportunity to both sides to review the entire spectrum of the strategic relationship between India and the European Union and to discuss bilateral, regional and multilateral issues of mutual concern,” the Ministry of External Affairs said in a statement.
The two sides are expected to discuss an entire gamut of issues, including accelerating trade ties in times of economic downturn, climate change, counter-terrorism, and instability in the West Asia. The India-EU Free Trade Agreement – being negotiated between the two sides from 2007 – will be central to the talks. The EU’s Ambassador to India, Joao Cravinho, has said that while there won’t be any signing of the trade deal, the summit will provide an opportunity for crucial trade-offs that could set the stage for closing negotiations by the middle of the year.