Von der Leyen said during a New Delhi visit that the bloc was considering a defense and security partnership with India. The EU is aiming to achieve a free trade agreement with New Delhi ahead of possible US tariffs.

Highlighting the need to bolster cooperation between new Delhi and Brussels in the areas of digital technology, Artificial Intelligence and defence, EU President Ursula von der Leyen termed India as a "pillar of certainty" for Europe in an "increasingly uncertain world".

India and the EU must take their strategic ties to the "next level" in an era of great power competition and geopolitical turmoils and the relationship has the potential to be one of the defining partnerships of this century,