India, Italy elevate bilateral ties to special strategic partnership: PM Modi

India and Italy have decided to elevate their bilateral ties to a Special Strategic Partnership, Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni announced on Wednesday (May 20).

The announcement came after bilateral talks in Rome, where both leaders outlined a broad agenda aimed at deepening engagement between the two countries.

Addressing a joint press statement, PM Modi said, “I am happy to announce that we are upgrading India-Italy relationship to Special Strategic Partnership.”

Trade and long-term cooperation

He further stated that the India-Italy Joint Strategic Action Plan 2025–2029 would provide a long-term framework for cooperation and noted that trade ties between the two nations were steadily growing.

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According to PM Modi, bilateral trade is moving towards a target of 20 billion euros, while more than 400 Italian companies operating in India continue to contribute to the country’s economic growth.

PM Modi also pointed to the frequency of interactions between the two leaders, saying repeated meetings over the last three-and-a-half years reflected sustained engagement between the two governments.

Defence and maritime partnership

Defence cooperation emerged as a major focus of discussions. “Our Defence Industrial Roadmap has paved the way for co-development and co-production,” said PM Modi, adding that maritime collaboration was a natural area of partnership for both countries, and India and Italy would strengthen cooperation in shipping, port modernisation, logistics and the blue economy.

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Security and counter-terror efforts also featured prominently in the talks. PM Modi said, adding, “India and Italy agree that terrorism is a serious challenge to humanity.”

“Our shared initiative against terror financing has presented an important example before the entire world,” he said, adding that responsible democracies must go beyond condemning terrorism and take steps to disrupt funding networks.

Strategic sectors in focus

Meloni described the upgraded partnership as the highest level of engagement achieved between the two nations and said both countries were exploring new opportunities in strategic sectors.

“Our aim is to enhance the complementarity between two countries in many sectors,” she said, listing advanced manufacturing, infrastructure, energy, space economy, defence, critical minerals, agro-industry, maritime transportation, tourism and culture among key areas of cooperation.

She said several agreements expected to be signed would further strengthen collaboration across a wide range of sectors.