NEW DELHI: As the global economic architecture is reshaped by industrial protectionism, tariff conflicts, and fragmented multilateralism, India and Italy are quietly constructing a new axis of democratic resilience—one rooted in technological co-creation, strategic autonomy, and shared geopolitical foresight. This emerging synergy was given compelling expression at the Italy–India Business, Science & Technology Forum held in New Delhi on Friday, where both nations signaled an unequivocal intent to move beyond transactional trade toward long-term strategic convergence.
This renewed partnership unfolds at a time when the European Union is reeling from trade deceleration with China—down 14.2% in 2024—and deepening discomfort over US clean-tech subsidies under the CHIPS Act and IRA, which many in Brussels view as distorting competition. Italy, having exited China’s Belt and Road Initiative in late 2024, is among the first EU members to recalibrate toward a high-trust, value-driven Indo-Pacific strategy, with India emerging as the pivotal partner. The forum not only reflects this shift but also elevates it as a template for EU’s evolving geopolitical posture.
Italian Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani underlined this ambition with strategic clarity: “India is not just a partner—it is Europe’s anchor in the Indo-Pacific. A democracy, an innovation powerhouse, a stable pole in an unstable world. Our alignment must now be institutional, long-term, and future-focused.” Tajani’s call to double bilateral trade from $14.2 billion to $30 billion by 2030 was framed not as aspiration but as strategic imperative, to be achieved through intensified collaboration in AI, defence innovation, clean energy, and space technology.
India’s External Affairs Minister Dr. S. Jaishankar responded with a vision equally strategic and future-ready. “Make in India is no longer about inward substitution—it’s an invitation to co-create resilient global value chains,” he said. Highlighting India’s ascent as the world’s third-largest startup ecosystem and a key player in sectors like EVs, semiconductors, and drone manufacturing, Jaishankar stressed the country’s readiness to serve as an industrial partner rooted in trust. “India today offers not just capacity, but credibility. That is what the world is searching for,” he declared.
The numbers validate this promise. India added 27 unicorns in 2024 alone. Its EV sector grew 44% year-on-year, while renewable energy capacity surged past 205 GW. Exports of solar modules and industrial automation equipment rose by 18% and 21%, respectively. These figures are not isolated achievements—they are part of a deeper industrial metamorphosis that positions India as a key node in any effort to restructure global supply chains away from authoritarian dependencies.
Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal placed this transformation within a broader economic trajectory. “India is targeting a $30–35 trillion economy by 2047 from our current $4 trillion base. This is not aspirational—it is structural, built on institutional reform, demographic scale, and democratic predictability,” he said. Goyal identified complementary sectors such as pharmaceuticals, agri-processing, textiles, mobility, and digital infrastructure, where Italian design and quality can blend with Indian scale and speed to produce globally competitive outcomes.
Italy’s Minister of Universities and Research, HE Anna Maria Bernini, brought academic and research collaboration to the center of this strategic realignment. “Geopolitical alignment without intellectual alignment is incomplete. Italy and India must now forge talent corridors, build joint research hubs, and nurture dual-degree campuses,” she asserted. She announced progress on a bilateral higher education pact aiming to support over 20,000 student and research exchanges annually by 2029, particularly in ethical AI, quantum computing, biotechnology, and sustainable energy systems.
This intellectual bridge will not only reinforce bilateral ties but also serve as a model for EU-Asia academic diplomacy in an age where knowledge, not just capital, determines strategic relevance. Bernini’s call for “strategic intellectual diplomacy” finds resonance in Italy’s broader pivot from China-dependence to knowledge-based global partnerships, anchored in shared values and regulatory transparency.
Harsha Vardhan Agarwal, President of FICCI, contextualized the bilateral momentum within a fragmented global order. “Multilateralism is under siege—from Ukraine to Gaza, institutions are failing. India and Italy must rise not just as partners but as anchors of a new, trust-based multilateralism. Let innovation and democracy be our new non-alignment,” he urged. This framing is critical as WTO paralysis and G7 fatigue push countries toward more agile bilateral and minilateral formats.
Italy is already India’s fifth-largest EU trading partner and among its top ten Eurozone investors. Over 36 Italian firms have expressed formal interest in India’s Production Linked Incentive (PLI) schemes, particularly in green mobility, industrial automation, and advanced materials. States like Gujarat, Tamil Nadu, and Maharashtra are emerging as focal points for Italian investment in battery tech, circular economy projects, and smart logistics. These economic commitments are further solidified by Italy’s endorsement of the India–Middle East–Europe Economic Corridor (IMEC)—a rules-based alternative to China’s Belt and Road Initiative, announced during the 2023 G20 Summit in New Delhi.
IMEC, by offering transparent financing, rule-of-law governance, and strategic connectivity, is not merely an infrastructure project—it is a diplomatic proposition. It aligns seamlessly with the EU’s Global Gateway strategy and positions India and Italy as its principal architects. As supply chain resilience becomes the new currency of global trust, Italy’s commitment to IMEC signals its confidence in India as both gateway and guarantor of future connectivity standards.
With global trade growth projected to slow to just 2.4% in 2025—down from the pre-pandemic average of 4.8%—the significance of bilateral economic corridors rises exponentially. In this context, the India–Italy partnership is more than diplomatic choreography—it is a blueprint for strategic resilience in a fractured world. Each new agreement, each joint lab, and each investment in shared innovation is a step toward re-engineering globalization itself.
As EU foreign and trade ministers prepare for a high-stakes July 2025 visit to China, the outcomes of this forum send a clear signal: Europe must avoid falling into old patterns of asymmetric dependence and instead institutionalize trusted partnerships with democracies like India. This is not just prudent—it is essential.
India and Italy must now act swiftly to implement five critical steps:
First, they must fast-track regulatory harmonization in sectors like pharmaceuticals, med-tech, AI standards, and clean energy to ensure smooth certification and faster market access.
Second, a permanent Indo-Italian Innovation Commission must be established to coordinate policy, patent exchange, and joint industry-academia initiatives in real-time.
Third, a bilateral sovereign innovation fund should be launched to co-finance start-ups, cleantech ventures, and social impact innovations with applications in Africa, West Asia, and Southeast Asia.
Fourth, both nations should initiate a high-speed visa and fast-track residency scheme for engineers, researchers, and entrepreneurs by 2026, making the Talent Corridor truly functional.
Fifth, IMEC should be used as a multilateral diplomatic framework to provide countries across the Global South with a transparent, democratic, and rules-based alternative to authoritarian infrastructure models.
This is the moment to define a New Non-Alignment—built not on passive neutrality, but on active collaboration between democratic innovators!
The world doesn’t need more summits. It needs more trust, more tech, and more transparency!
Let not the democracies wait—while the autocracies dominate!
Dr. Shahid Siddiqui is a senior journalist, media scholar, and author. He writes on geopolitics, trade diplomacy, and emerging technologies. Follow him via X: @shahidsiddiqui
