The dialogue underscores Belgium’s strategic importance as India’s gateway to the EU
New Delhi:The inaugural India-Belgium Strategic Dialogue, co-chaired by External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar and his Belgian counterpart Maxime Prevot in Brussels on Wednesday, signals New Delhi’s intent to deepen engagement with key European partners.
Coming amid growing geopolitical uncertainty, fractured global supply chains and Europe’s search for trusted economic partners, the dialogue underscores Belgium’s strategic importance as India’s gateway to the EU and a critical partner in emerging sectors such as semiconductors, clean energy and advanced manufacturing.
The inaugural dialogue comes at a time when India and the European Union (EU) move towards operationalising their landmark Free Trade Agreement (FTA).
Jaishankar stated in a post on his X handle that the “discussions reflected the ambition of India’s ties with Belgium, and the European Union.”
He further stated that the two sides reviewed their cooperation including in political, economic, investment, clean energy, defence, mobility and pharmaceutical domains.
“Also focused on opportunities in ports, maritime, semiconductors as well as broader cooperation for supply chain de-risking,” he said. “Had a useful exchange of perspectives on global developments including in West Asia.”
Although bilateral in format, the dialogue carries significance well beyond India-Belgium relations because Belgium occupies a unique position within the EU’s political, economic and institutional architecture.
Belgium is often described as India’s gateway to Europe for several reasons. Brussels hosts the headquarters of the EU and NATO, making Belgium central to European policymaking.
The Port of Antwerp-Bruges is Europe’s second-largest seaport and one of the continent’s most important logistics hubs.
Belgium serves as a major distribution centre for Indian exports entering the European market.
Antwerp is the global hub for diamonds, with India and Belgium maintaining one of the world’s largest diamond trading relationships. Belgium has emerged as an important partner in pharmaceuticals, chemicals, clean technologies, advanced manufacturing and logistics.
Consequently, stronger India-Belgium ties naturally reinforce India’s broader engagement with the EU.
The dialogue comes at a strategically significant time. India and the EU concluded negotiations for the India-EU Free Trade Agreement earlier this year after years of difficult negotiations covering tariffs, services, digital trade, investment protection, government procurement and sustainability standards.
While the broad negotiations have been completed, successful implementation will depend heavily on collaboration with key EU member states. Belgium, being one of the EU’s most influential trading nations and a major logistics hub, will play an important role in facilitating trade flows once the agreement enters into force.
One of the most important aspects of Jaishankar’s remarks was the emphasis on supply chain de-risking. This reflects a major shift in global economic strategy.
Following the COVID-19 pandemic, the Russia-Ukraine war and increasing geopolitical tensions with China, many Western economies have recognised the risks associated with excessive dependence on a single manufacturing base.
The EU’s Economic Security Strategy similarly seeks to diversify supply chains, reduce strategic dependencies, build resilient industrial ecosystems, and secure access to critical technologies and raw materials.
India has emerged as one of Europe’s preferred partners in this effort. The dialogue indicates that Belgium can become an important node connecting Indian manufacturing with European value chains.
Jaishankar’s explicit reference to semiconductors is particularly noteworthy.
India has launched an ambitious semiconductor manufacturing programme aimed at developing fabrication, packaging and design capabilities.
Belgium is home to the world-renowned Imec, one of the world’s leading semiconductor research and innovation centres.
Closer India-Belgium cooperation could include semiconductor research, chip design, advanced packaging, talent development, supply chain resilience, and technology partnerships.
Such collaboration complements India’s broader semiconductor partnerships with countries including Japan, the US, Singapore and the EU.
According to the External Affairs Minister, ports and maritime cooperation featured prominently during the dialogue. This has strategic significance beyond commercial shipping.
Potential cooperation includes smart ports, green shipping, logistics digitisation, maritime infrastructure, port management, and hydrogen-based maritime fuels.
Such cooperation aligns with India’s aspiration to become a global logistics hub while supporting Europe’s diversification of maritime supply chains.
Energy security has become a major concern for Europe following disruptions caused by the Russia-Ukraine conflict. Belgium has prioritised offshore wind, hydrogen, carbon capture, and clean technologies.
India is simultaneously pursuing one of the world’s largest renewable energy transitions through green hydrogen, solar harnessing, battery storage, and renewable infrastructure.
Closer collaboration could generate investments in green technologies and support both sides’ climate objectives.
“By meeting regularly, we can build on what already exists and work more closely together in areas such as clean energy, innovation, security and defence,” said Mr Prevot, who is also deputy prime minister.
Although India-Belgium defence ties have traditionally been modest, the inclusion of defence in the dialogue reflects Europe’s evolving security outlook. European countries are increasingly looking beyond NATO to develop stronger security partnerships with Indo-Pacific democracies.
Potential areas include defence industrial cooperation, dual-use technologies, cyber security, maritime security, and defence innovation. This also complements India’s expanding defence partnerships with France, Germany, Italy and several other European countries.
The emphasis on mobility during the dialogue reflects growing European demand for skilled professionals. India has become an importanters, and students
Improved mobility arrangements could support implementation of the FTA by facilitating services trade and knowledge partnerships.
According to Gulshan Sachdeva, Professor at the Centre for European Studies in the School of International Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, though it is a small country, Belgium’s trade and economic ties with India have been significant.
According to figures shared by the External Affairs Ministry, India-Belgium bilateral trade amounted to $10.92 billion in 2025-26. Major Indian exports include precious metals and stones, chemicals, and base metals, while key imports are precious metals and stones, base metals, chemicals, textiles, and machinery. Trade in diamonds is a significant component of bilateral trade.
“Belgium is also the diamond capital of the world,” Sachdeva told ETV Bharat. “A lot of Indians, particularly from Gujarat, have companies and are settled in Antwerp in Belgium. Earlier, Antwerp was dominated by Jewish shopkeepers. But now, over the last 10-15 years, Indian traders have also gone and settled there.’
Foreign direct investments (FDI) from Belgium to India during the period April 2000 to June 2025 amounted to $4.045 billion, positioning that country as the 18th largest contributor to India’s FDI.
Around 175 Belgian companies operate in India, while several Indian companies, particularly in IT and software, have established a presence in Belgium to serve both the Belgian and European markets.
Sachdeva said that as the host of the headquarters of the EU and NATO, Belgium is an important centre in Europe.
“Belgium also has a reasonably good defence industry, particularly revolvers,” he said. “So, defence and security are becoming, I would say, a very important component of all the conversations which are taking place at the EU level and also at the member state level.”
In this connection, he referred to Readiness 2030 (formerly the ReArm Europe Plan), a massive EU strategic initiative aimed at mobilising up to €800 billion for defence spending by 2030.
“A major transformation is taking place in the European defence industry,” Sachdeva said. “This is because US President Donald Trump is pushing the European countries to spend 5 percent of their budget on defence.”
Apart from defence trade and investment, he said that the core of cooperation between India and European countries also includes technology and green energy transition.
It is in this context that the India-Belgium Strategic Dialogue assumes significance, he added.
