New Delhi: External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar’s statement on Monday that political relations between India and the Mediterranean are strong and defence collaboration is growing reinforces why the region that encompasses Southern Europe, North Africa and parts of West Asia has become important for India in today’s geopolitical order.
“Our annual trade with the Mediterranean nations is about $80 billion,” Jaishankar said while addressing the Rome Mediterranean Dialogue 2024 in the Italian capital. “We have a diaspora here of 4,60,000. About 40 per cent of that (is) in Italy. Our key interests are in fertilizers, energy, water technology, diamonds, defence and cyber.”
He said that India has significant projects underway like airports, ports, railways, steel, green hydrogen, phosphates and submarine cables.
“Our political relations with the Mediterranean are strong and our defence collaboration is growing, including more exercises and exchanges,” he stated, adding that the Mediterranean presents both opportunities and risks in an uncertain and volatile world.
The Mediterranean region, a historic hub of global commerce, culture and politics, holds strategic importance for India. This vast region, encompassing the countries of Greece, Italy and Spain in Southern Europe, Egypt, Algeria, Morocco and Tunisia in North Africa, Israel in West Asia Cyprus in the Eastern Mediterranean, has witnessed growing interactions with India across economic, political, cultural, and security domains. While India’s engagement with the Mediterranean has historical roots, recent geopolitical shifts and economic opportunities have further deepened the relationship.
“India’s ties with the Mediterranean region are very historic,” Abhinav Pandya, founder, director and CEO of the Usanas Foundation think tank, told ETV Bharat. “In ancient times, India had great trading relations with the Roman Empire and the Greeks. India had a trading post in the Roman Empire.”
Pandya explained that Romans used to visit the ancient port city of Muziris on India’s Malabar Coast. Trade was in spices, exotic animals and gold among others. There was also an exchange of knowledge and wisdom. “However, today there is a geopolitical component to the India-Mediterranean relationship," Pandya said. “And Greece and Italy have emerged as the focal countries for India’s engagement with the Mediterranean region.”
For example, he said, that both Greece and India face Islamist terrorism and for that, both countries need to be very friendly with each other.
According to a joint statement issued during Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis’s visit to India in February this year, both sides reaffirmed the Strategic Partnership they share and decided to continue upgrading the bilateral agenda further and forging cooperation in all dimensions of political, economic, security, defence, maritime, shipping and cultural cooperation.
“Underscoring the importance of working closely together to promote international and regional peace and prosperity, the two leaders (Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Mitsotakis) agreed to hold regular contacts between the two Foreign Ministries to exchange views on global and regional security threats, particularly in the Eastern Mediterranean and the Indo-Pacific regions to deepen interaction and expand cooperation in security and strategic areas of common interest, including maritime, cyber and hybrid threats,” the statement reads.
It further stated that both leaders reinforced their commitment to a free, open and rules-based Mediterranean Sea and Indo-Pacific, in accordance with the international law of the sea as reflected in UN Convention for the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), and with full respect for the sovereignty, territorial integrity, and freedom of navigation to the benefit of maritime security and international peace and stability. It was agreed that the relevant authorities would exchange legal and technical know-how on maritime security and UNCLOS issues in an institutionalised manner.
India’s ties with Italy have also been growing in recent times. During Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni’s visit to India last year, the relationship between the two countries was elevated to that of a Strategic Partnership.
Last week, Modi and Meloni held a meeting on the sidelines of the G20 Summit in Rio de Janeiro during which they reiterated their commitment to advancing the India-Italy Strategic Partnership and announced a Joint Strategic Action Plan 2025-29, which outlines their vision for the next five years. The Action Plan will pursue joint collaborations, programmes and initiatives in key sectors of trade and investment, science and technology, new and emerging technologies, clean energy, space, defence, connectivity and people-to-people linkages.
“India and Italy regularly hold joint military exercises and exchanges,” Pandya said. During his speech in Rome, Jaishankar also said that the new element of the relationship between India and the Mediterranean region will be connectivity.
“The IMEEC (India-Middle East-Europe Economic Corridor) that was announced in September 2023 can be a game changer,” he said. “The conflict underway currently in the Middle East has undoubtedly been a major complication. But the IMEEC is proceeding ahead on the Eastern side, especially between India, UAE (United Arab Emirates) and Saudi Arabia. I also flag your attention to the I2U2 (India-Israel-UAE-US) grouping. Expect it to be more active in times to come.”
The IMEEC is a planned economic corridor that aims to bolster economic development by fostering connectivity and economic integration between Asia, the Persian Gulf and Europe. It comprises an Eastern Corridor connecting India to the Gulf region and a Northern Corridor connecting the Gulf region to Europe. It will include a railway and ship-rail transit network and road transport routes. On September 10 last year, a memorandum of understanding (MoU) on the IMEEC was unveiled during the 2023 G20 New Delhi Summit by India, the US, the UAE, Saudi Arabia, France, Germany, Italy, and the European Union (EU).
According to Pandya, the IMEEC has emerged as a strong factor in ties between India and the Mediterranean region. “It is very important for access to Europe,” he said. “It will give an alternate route to the European market. As of now, we have the Suez Canal. But, once the IMEEC is open, it will greatly reduce travel time to Europe.”
In this context, Pandya referred to the Piraeus Port in Greece, which can serve as a vital cog in the IMEEC. In fact, only last week, Union Minister for Ports, Shipping and Inland Waterways Sarbananda Sonowal held a meeting With Greece’s Minister for Maritime Affairs Christos Stylianides in New Delhi during which they discussed the potential of Piraeus Port as a hub for Indian exports to Europe.
According to reports in the Greece media, Stylianides noted significant interest from Indian exporters in accessing European markets, with officials at the meeting highlighting Greece’s potential to play a pivotal role through the Piraeus transhipment complex.
According to Pandya, Italy too is interested in the IMEEC as it is wary of China’s Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) interests in Europe. In fact, Italy had joined the BRI but pulled out last year citing various concerns.
In September this year, while addressing the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) India Mediterranean Business Conclave in New Delhi, Jaishankar said that India’s relationship with countries of that region has progressed in recent years, especially as the Indian economy gathered greater momentum.
“The strategic location of the Mediterranean, with approximately 600 ports and actually services 25 per cent of global seaborne trade, establishes it as a crucial hub,” he had said. “India, for its part, plays an equally vital role in the Indo-Pacific extending its reach westwards. Given both the location and centrality, and the levels of activity, it makes eminent sense to connect the two for mutual benefit.”
To sum up, India’s relationship with the Mediterranean region is marked by mutual benefits and shared strategic interests. By addressing challenges and leveraging opportunities, India can deepen its engagement with this geopolitically critical region, contributing to global stability and prosperity. The Mediterranean’s role as a bridge between Asia, Africa, and Europe underscores its importance in India’s broader foreign policy objectives.
