India, Slovakia elevate ties to Comprehensive Partnership; sign 11 pacts, push for early India-EU FTA rollout

India and Slovakia on Monday elevated their bilateral relationship to a Comprehensive Partnership and signed 11 agreements aimed at expanding cooperation across sectors including defence, labour migration, digital technologies and higher education.

The decisions were taken following talks between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his Slovak counterpart Robert Fico in Bratislava, marking the first visit by an Indian prime minister to Slovakia.

"We have decided to elevate our relations to the status of a Comprehensive Partnership. This symbolises our shared beliefs, shared priorities, and shared future," Modi said in his media statement.

The new framework is expected to strengthen existing cooperation mechanisms while opening up fresh avenues for collaboration at both bilateral and multilateral levels.

Modi said he and Fico held extensive discussions on giving a "new direction" to bilateral ties and unlocking opportunities in emerging sectors.

India-EU FTA gets renewed push

The two leaders also underlined the importance of the India-European Union Free Trade Agreement and agreed to work towards its earliest implementation to boost economic engagement.

Modi thanked Fico for Slovakia's support in finalising the trade pact.

"We will work towards its earliest implementation so that industries, startups, and traders of both countries can derive maximum benefit from it," he said.

In his remarks, Fico described the India-EU FTA as one of the "most ambitious" trade agreements ever signed.

"Slovakia not only welcomes this agreement, but it will take the necessary and practical steps for the implementation of this agreement," he said.

Defence, energy and technology cooperation in focus

The two sides agreed to enhance cooperation in the energy sector, focusing on energy security, sustainability and resilience through diversification of energy sources, including nuclear energy and geothermal power.

"Our potential is vast. Our aspirations are even greater. Automobiles, railways, advanced manufacturing, and green technologies are areas of particular interest to us," Modi said.

"Today, we combined our strengths on all these issues and took several important decisions for the benefit of the people of both countries."

Defence cooperation also figured prominently in the talks, with the two countries finalising a Letter of Intent on defence collaboration.

Modi said defence ties between India and Slovakia reflected the "deep mutual trust and strategic convergence" between the two countries and would provide fresh momentum to cooperation between their defence industries.

The agreements signed after the talks are expected to facilitate deeper engagement in labour migration, defence manufacturing, digital technologies, quantum communication and higher education.

Shared stance on terrorism and global reforms

According to a joint statement, the two leaders acknowledged the growing geopolitical, economic and technological significance of the Indo-Pacific and supported stronger India-Slovakia cooperation to promote regional connectivity, open international trade, freedom of navigation and peaceful resolution of disputes.

The leaders welcomed the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding on labour migration and agreed to work towards the early conclusion of a Social Security Agreement to safeguard the interests of professionals moving between the two countries.

On global governance, Modi and Fico supported comprehensive reforms of multilateral institutions, particularly the United Nations Security Council. India also appreciated Slovakia's continued support for India's permanent membership in a reformed and expanded UNSC.

The two leaders unequivocally condemned terrorism in all its forms, including cross-border terrorism, and strongly condemned the Pahalgam terror attack.

They agreed to establish a Joint Working Group on Counter-Terrorism and called for coordinated international efforts to combat terrorism.

The joint statement said both sides reaffirmed their commitment to strengthening cooperation against terrorism through multilateral platforms, including the United Nations, and called for strong action against terrorists and terror entities designated by the UN Security Council's 1267 Sanctions Committee.

Modi and Fico also underscored the need to hold perpetrators, organisers and sponsors of terrorist acts accountable and agreed to work closely towards the early adoption of the Comprehensive Convention on International Terrorism (CCIT) within the UN framework.