PolicyDiplomacy
Modi and Tusk agree to deepen India-Poland ties in defence, space and nuclear energy
After talks at Hyderabad House, the Prime Minister invited Polish companies to co-develop and co-produce in strategic sectors, and the two sides set up a startup bridge and youth hackathons.
Key points
- Narendra Modi and Donald Tusk agreed to deepen cooperation in defence, space and nuclear energy.
- Modi invited Polish firms into co-development and co-production in these strategic sectors.
- The two sides launched an India-Poland Startup Bridge and plan tech hackathons for young people.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his Polish counterpart Donald Tusk agreed on Thursday to deepen cooperation in defence, space and nuclear energy, after talks at Hyderabad House in New Delhi.
“Today, we have agreed to deepen our ties in the fields of defence, space, and nuclear energy,” Modi said in his press statement after the talks. “We invite Polish companies to work with India on co-development and co-production in all these strategic sectors.”
Tusk is the first Polish Prime Minister to visit India since 2010. The two countries raised their relationship to a Strategic Partnership when Modi visited Warsaw in August 2024. Tusk laid a wreath at Rajghat on Thursday morning and met External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar before the talks.
Trade and supply chains
Modi set the talks against a difficult global backdrop. “The world today is going through a period of uncertainty and change,” he said, and pointed to the growth of both economies. Poland’s GDP, he noted, crossed the “historic USD 1 trillion mark” last year, while India grew 7.8% in the last quarter.
“We are confident that companies from both nations will work together to develop trusted supply chains for the world,” Modi said. The two sides have set a goal of doubling bilateral trade by 2030.
He said the India-EU Free Trade Agreement, once in force, would open the Polish market to Indian machinery, chemicals, plastics and engineering goods. He named advanced manufacturing, food processing, biotechnology, railways and mobility as areas where Polish companies could invest in India.
Startups, minerals and young people
Beyond the big-ticket sectors, the leaders agreed to build partnerships drawing on Poland’s experience in critical minerals and coal gasification. They also set up an India-Poland Startup Bridge and plan technology hackathons for young people from both countries.
“Our relationship in the domains of IT and cybersecurity is already robust,” Modi said.
Jaishankar, after his morning meeting, wrote on X that he “appreciated his sharing thoughts on deepening India - Poland cooperation across a wide range of domains.”
What comes next
Tusk, who is accompanied by Finance and Economy Minister Andrzej Domański and a business delegation, is due to attend the India-Poland Business Forum in New Delhi. On Friday, 23 October, the last day of his visit, he is due in Bengaluru to meet leaders of the IT and space sectors.