India and Poland identify several initiatives to give a new direction to their relations
India and Poland have decided to elevate their relationship to a Strategic Partnership. The decision, which comes as the two nations celebrate 70 years of diplomatic relations, was announced by Prime Minister Narendra Modi after he held bilateral talks with Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk in Warsaw on Thursday (August 22, 2024).
 
“This year we celebrate 70 years of our diplomatic relations. On this occasion, we have decided to reshape our relationship into a Strategic Partnership,” Prime Minister Modi stated in his press statement after meeting his Polish counterpart.
 
During their talks, the two sides also decided on a Social Security Agreement for the welfare of the skilled workforce, skilled workers, and to promote mobility.
 
Prime Minister Modi added that the two sides had identified several initiatives to give a new direction to their relations and went on to list the following areas:
1. Efforts will be made to connect the private sector to broaden economic cooperation.
2. Noting that Poland is among the world leaders in food processing, he invited Polish companies to join the Mega Food Parks being built in India.
3. In India, rapid urbanization is opening up new opportunities for cooperation in areas such as water treatment, solid waste management, and urban infrastructure.
4. Clean Coal Technology, Green Hydrogen, Renewable Energy, Artificial Intelligence are also common priorities.
5. “We invite Polish companies to join Make in India and Make for the World,” Prime Minister Modi remarked.
 
Referring to India’s many accomplishments in areas such as FinTech, Pharma, and space, he said, “We would be happy to share our experience in these areas with Poland. Close cooperation in the field of defence is a symbol of our deep mutual trust. Mutual cooperation in this area will be strengthened”.
 
In his press statement, Prime Minister Modi also highlighted the strong historical and cultural ties between the two nations and referred to Poland’s “very old and rich tradition” of Indology and Sanskrit.

This was the first visit by an Indian Prime Minister to the country in 45 years. The last Indian PM to visit Poland was Morarji Desai in 1979.
 
Briefing the media on Monday (August 19, 2024), Secretary (West), Ministry of External Affairs (MEA), Tanmay Lal described Poland as an important partner for India in Central Europe.
The country will hold the next Presidency of the Council of the European Union. Lal also pointed out that Poland has the sixth largest economy within the European Union.
 
The India-Poland bilateral trade is of the order of USD6 billion, which makes Poland India's largest trading partner in Central and Eastern Europe. Indian investments into Poland are estimated at around USD3 billion while Polish investments into India are around USD1 billion.
 
Poland also has a large Indian community. Estimated at around 25,000, this includes about 5,000 students.