Tanmaya Lal, the Secretary (West) of the Ministry of External Affairs, met with Angelika Niebler, the Chair of the European Parliament's Delegation for Relations with India. They held a discussion on the India and EU ties, parliamentary exchanges, and global issues. 

Ministry of External Affairs spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal, in a post on X said, "Secretary (West) Mr. Tanmaya Lal met with @ANiebler Ms. Angelika Niebler, European Parliament Chair of the Delegation for Relations with India. They discussed India-EU bilateral ties, parliamentary exchanges, and global issues." Carl Bildt, the former prime minister of Sweden, said earlier Monday that 2025 will be a "breakthrough year" for India-EU relations. 

In a conversation with ANI, Bildt mentioned that both parties are dedicated to finalising an agreement by the end of the year. "I think that we will have a breakthrough this year in the relationship between the European Union and India. There's a commitment now on both the Indian and the EU sides to have sort of an agreement concluded by the end of the year," Bildt said. "It's got to be difficult. It's got to require compromise both from the European side and Indian side, but in the rather uncertain environment that we have for global trade with tariffs...I think that would be very important," he added. 

In February, during EU President Ursula von der Leyen's visit to India, both sides instructed their teams to finish the Free Trade Agreement (FTA) negotiations by the end of the year. The Indian and European Union delegations discussed various topics in the presence of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and EU President Ursula von der Leyen. According to the Ministry of External Affairs, the leaders have asked their teams to complete the FTA negotiations within this year. During that time, Tanmaya Lal, Secretary (West) of the Ministry of External Affairs, noted that 20 Union Cabinet Ministers and Ministers of State participated in discussions. The talks covered various topics, including trade, digital green technology, energy, environment and connectivity. 

The European Commission President was on a two-day visit to India, accompanied by members of the European College of Commissioners. "The leaders have directed their teams that the India-EU FTA should be concluded within the year. This is, of course, a very important outcome," Tanmaya Lal said.