Global media hail India–EU FTA
The conclusion of the India–EU Free Trade Agreement (FTA) has drawn strong and positive reactions globally, cutting across international media, foreign political leadership, global business heads and respected policy experts.
The deal is widely being described as historic, strategic and timely, both economically and geopolitically. Leading global media outlets have highlighted the scale, ambition and strategic timing of the India–EU FTA.
The Telegraph, in an article titled ‘Modi is real winner in ‘mother of all trade deals’ with EU’, described the agreement as the “mother of all trade deals”, arguing that India has emerged as the real strategic winner. The paper noted that the deal eliminates or reduces tariffs on 96.6 per cent of EU exports to India, while the EU will cut tariffs on 99.5 per cent of Indian goods over seven years.
While Bloomberg, in an article titled ‘All Roads Lead to Modi as World Hedges Trump’, said that the “mother of all deals” concluded between India and the EU, The Wall Street Journal framed the agreement as a response by middle powers to global tariff disruptions, highlighting how India and the EU are expanding alliances amid uncertainty created by US trade policies. The New York Times stressed that the deal brings together the world’s largest economic bloc and the fastest-growing major economy after nearly two decades of negotiations. The Washington Post called it a historic deal with its headline saying ‘India and EU clinch the ‘mother of all deals’ in a historic free trade agreement’. The Guardian referred to it as ‘Mother of all deals’: EU and India sign free trade agreement’.
A similar headline was also reported by BBC - India and EU announce ‘mother of all trade deals’. The scale has also been highlighted by Al Jazeera, which said ‘’Mother of all deals’: How India-EU trade deal creates $27 trillion market’.
Fox News said India is set to benefit from this agreement, as tariffs will be reduced to zero in several key sectors. He said that neighbouring countries like Pakistan and Bangladesh will no longer be able to compete with India in the European market. Global policy experts and think tanks described the agreement as substantively strong and strategically well-timed.
Richard Rossow, Senior Advisor at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), said the deal brings together a quarter of the world’s population and a massive share of global trade, adding that the positive optics reflect strong substance. He also noted that India’s recent FTAs show a clear shift toward deeper and more ambitious trade commitments.
