Defence, Green Energy, 2X Trade In 5 Years: What Modi, De Wever Discussed For India-Belgium Ties

India and Belgium have set a target of doubling bilateral trade over the next five years, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on Thursday.

Both the countries agreed to deepen cooperation in defence, renewable energy, critical minerals, semiconductors, maritime infrastructure and law enforcement, he added.

Speaking after talks with Belgian Prime Minister Bart De Wever in New Delhi, PM Modi said the India-European Union Free Trade Agreement, concluded earlier this year, had created fresh opportunities for bilateral economic engagement.

"Earlier this year, we concluded a historic Free Trade Agreement between India and the European Union. This unprecedented cooperation between two of the world's largest democratic powers will further strengthen global stability, growth, and shared prosperity," Modi said.

He said the two countries had established an Investment Fast-Track Mechanism for Belgian companies, agreed to make the India-Belgium Business Forum a regular platform and decided to improve coordination among financial, fintech and regulatory institutions.

"We have decided to make the India-Belgium Business Forum a regular mechanism. We will enhance synergy between the financial, fintech, and regulatory institutions of both nations, and through these measures, we will realise the goal of doubling bilateral trade over the next five years," he said.

The bilateral trade stood at $13.01 billion in 2025-26, while Belgium's foreign direct investment (FDI) inflows into India totalled about $4.2 billion between April 2000 and December 2025, as per PTI.

Defence And Security Cooperation

The two nations signed a Letter of Intent between their defence ministries to establish a framework for regular exchanges, staff talks, education and training, research and defence-industrial partnerships.

Modi said the two sides would expand military exchanges and training, while agreements between their defence industries would create opportunities for co-development and co-production.

Belgium has also appointed a Defence Attache in New Delhi, while India plans to appoint a resident Defence Attache in Brussels.

The two sides also signed an MoU between India's Central Bureau of Investigation and Belgium's Federal Police covering transnational organised crime and cybercrime, including information sharing, capacity building and tracing fugitives.

Green Energy And Technology

A renewed MoU on renewable energy cooperation was also signed, expanding collaboration in green hydrogen, solar power, energy storage, offshore wind, bio-energy, small hydropower and pumped-storage projects, as per the India-Belgium joint statement released by the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA).

India and Belgium would also cooperate more closely on critical-mineral processing and recycling, it said.

The two sides backed greater engagement between India's semiconductor ecosystem and Belgium's imec, with the aim of developing deeper partnerships in advanced semiconductor technologies.

Mobility, Ports And Trade

The countries agreed to expand cooperation in ports, logistics, connectivity, dredging and offshore wind infrastructure. The two leaders also welcomed plans for collaboration between Belgium's Antwerp/Flanders Port Training Centre and India's Jawaharlal Nehru Port Authority.

On mobility, both sides agreed to strengthen visa-processing capacity and facilitate movement of professionals, students, researchers and business travellers.

The leaders also agreed to work towards a Migration and Mobility Partnership Agreement.

According to the joint statement, India and Belgium would continue to use the India-Belgium-Luxembourg Economic Union Joint Economic Commission as a key mechanism for economic cooperation, with its 19th session expected later this year.

The two countries also backed timely implementation of the India-EU FTA and further cooperation under the India-EU Trade and Technology Council.