EU envoys top guests at India celebration to seal trade deal

European Council president Antonio Costa arrived in India on Sunday, as the EU and New Delhi seek to seal a free-trade pact, capping nearly two decades of negotiations between the economic behemoths.Costa and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen are chief guests for this year’s Republic Day celebrations in New Delhi on Monday before the 16th EU-India summit on Tuesday, where they hope to shake hands on the accord, described as the “mother of all deals”.“The summit will be an opportunity to build on the EU-India strategic partnership and further strengthen collaboration across key policy areas,” the EU Council said on social media.India, the world’s most populous nation, is on track to become the world’s fourth largest economy this year, according to International Monetary Fund projections.While the EU eyes India as an important market for the future, New Delhi sees the European bloc as an important source of much-needed technology and investment to rapidly upscale its infrastructure and create millions of new jobs for its people.“We are on the cusp of a historic trade agreement,” Leyen said ahead of the summit.