Relations between India and Spain are developing and diversifying
- Defence, industry and geopolitical advances
- Spain's accession to the Indo-Pacific Ocean Initiative
- India-EU Summit and free trade agreement negotiations
- International scenario and diversification of ties
- Security cooperation and prospects for strategic partnership
- Upcoming high-level visits and consolidation of the relationship
- Bilateral momentum and global relevance of the link
The timing of Albares' visit to India is of utmost importance, as this meeting not only addressed progress in bilateral relations between India and Spain, but also provides both parties with the opportunity to play a constructive role in global politics.
Firstly, during this visit, both parties launched the Dual Year of Culture, Tourism and Artificial Intelligence between India and Spain, marking the 70th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between the two countries in 2026. During this year, both countries will strengthen their cultural, commercial and scientific activities. The theme chosen for the celebration of this 70th anniversary reflects the continuity and progress of bilateral relations. India and Spain maintain close ties in the fields of culture and tourism. This demonstrates the strength of the soft power relations between New Delhi and Madrid, which are expected to continue to grow. To this continuity, India and Spain are now adding Artificial Intelligence (AI) to their areas of cooperation. As AI expands its application to various fields, particularly defence and cybersecurity, the partnership between India and Spain will become even more important in the future.
Defence, industry and geopolitical advances
Secondly, and in line with the previous point, India and Spain are gradually strengthening their ties in the field of military power. This is evident in advances in defence and geopolitics. The manufacturing plant for the C295 military transport aircraft in Vadodara, India, is a joint venture between Airbus of Spain and Tata Advanced Systems Limited of India. This is an important step for both countries. Furthermore, through this initiative, Spain is supporting the development of the defence industry in India.
In the geopolitical sphere, Albares' visit marked Spain's accession to the Indo-Pacific Ocean Initiative. This initiative was launched by India in 2019 as a platform to promote cooperation in various areas of the maritime sphere.
Spain's accession to the Indo-Pacific Ocean Initiative
By joining this forum, Spain is increasing its involvement in a region that has received relatively little attention in its foreign policy until now.
In this way, Spain is following in the footsteps of France, the United Kingdom, Germany and the European Union, which already have their own policies for engaging with the Indo-Pacific region.
India-EU Summit and free trade agreement negotiations
Thirdly, Albares travelled to India a few days before the arrival of the European Union delegation. The President of the European Council, Antonio Costa, and the President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, will be the guests of honour at the 77th Republic Day parade in New Delhi on 26 January. The 16th India-EU Summit will be held on 27 January.
India and the EU are currently negotiating a free trade agreement and are close to concluding it. Albares has enthusiastically expressed Spain's support for this trade agreement. If this free trade agreement is finalised, it would contribute to increasing trade and investment between Spain and India.
International scenario and diversification of ties
Fourthly, the world order is currently in a state of uncertainty, with the United States in conflict with its own partners, such as the European Union and India. Trump's stance on Greenland is causing friction between the United States and its European NATO allies. Spain is among the countries opposing the US plan to annex Greenland.
The United States also has a dispute with India over its relations with Russia. Faced with Trump's threats to impose tariffs on both European countries and India, they could strengthen their ties and reduce their dependence on the United States to a certain extent. Within India-EU relations, strengthening ties with Spain would help diversify India's relations with the European Union.
Security cooperation and prospects for strategic partnership
Fifth, Albares described India as a reliable partner for Spain. He also mentioned the possibility of India and Spain elevating their relations to the level of a strategic partnership in the future.
Indian Foreign Minister Dr S. Jaishankar called for greater cooperation between the two countries in the fight against terrorism. It is important to note that, in addition to expanding cooperation on defence, both sides must intensify their collaboration in the fight against non-traditional security threats, such as terrorism, given that this is a persistent transnational threat.
Upcoming high-level visits and consolidation of the relationship
Finally, relations between India and Spain show encouraging trends. Bilateral ties had remained suboptimal for most of the seven decades, mainly due to limited interaction at the highest level.
Albares mentioned the upcoming visit to India by Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez, as well as the visit of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi to Spain in the near future. These steps are essential to consolidate the relations that both countries are currently strengthening.
Bilateral momentum and global relevance of the link
After 70 years of diplomatic relations, ties between India and Spain are gaining considerable momentum.
The strengthening of bilateral relations is not only important at the bilateral level, but also at the global level. In an ever-changing international context, the partnership between New Delhi and Madrid could contribute to promoting a balanced, rules-based multipolar order.