India and the European Union have wrapped up negotiations on New Delhi's association with the EU's flagship Euro 93.5-billion research and innovation programme, paving the way for greater cooperation under their broader strategic partnership.
The decision comes weeks before India and the 27-nation bloc are set to seal a landmark free trade agreement -- billed as the "mother of all deals" -- to create a market of two billion people.
The European Commission and India have successfully concluded negotiations on New Delhi's association to Horizon Europe programme, the EU said.
This marks an important step forward for EU-India relations, strengthening scientific cooperation, creating new opportunities in research, and deepening the strategic partnership, it said.
India's association with the Horizon programme is seen as part of the comprehensive strategic agenda of the two sides for the next five years.
For researchers, businesses and research organisations across Europe, India's association will open up more opportunities to collaborate with Indian partners and build lasting scientific and technological links, the EU said.
Once the agreement is signed and the necessary procedures are completed on both sides, researchers and organisations in India will be able to receive funding directly from Horizon Europe and lead collaborative projects under its Pillar II: 'Global Challenges and European Industrial Competitiveness', it said.
This is the largest part of the programme which funds collaborative, multi-national research and innovation projects tackling societal and technological issues, such as health, digital, industry, space, climate, energy, and bioeconomy.
The EU said the move will create new opportunities for European and Indian partners to pool expertise, develop technologies and address shared challenges.
Association is the closest form of cooperation offered by the EU to non-EU countries under Horizon Europe.
It allows organisations in associated countries to participate on equal terms with their EU counterparts in the parts of the programme covered by the agreement. In return, associated countries contribute financially to the programme.
The successful conclusion of negotiations clears the way for the signature of the association agreement, subject to the completion of the necessary procedures on both sides. The two sides are likely to sign the formal agreement in January.
India and the EU had launched the exploratory discussions on the Horizon programme in February 2026 and formal negotiations began in July.
EU-India scientific cooperation builds on the agreement for scientific and technological cooperation, signed in 2001 and renewed until 2030.
Research and innovation also form an integral part of the Joint EU-India Comprehensive Strategic Agenda towards 2030, adopted at the summit talks between the two sides in New Delhi on January 27.
The partnership has been strengthened through the EU-India Trade and Technology Council, which facilitates collaboration on key digital areas such as artificial intelligence, digital public infrastructure, semiconductors, high-performance computing, digital skills and the sixth generation of wireless telecommunications.
The EU and India took a further step in collaboration on digital skills through the launch of the first-ever European Legal Gateway Office in India last February, aiming to facilitate safe, legal and well-informed mobility to the EU in the ICT sector.
Horizon Europe runs from 2021 to 2027, with a budget of Euro 93.5 billion.
International cooperation is central to the programme, bringing together expertise and resources to advance scientific excellence and innovation.
Currently, 23 non-EU countries are associated with Horizon Europe. They are: Albania, Armenia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Canada, Egypt, the Faroe Islands, Georgia, Iceland, Israel, Japan, Korea, Kosovo, Moldova, Montenegro, New Zealand, North Macedonia, Norway, Serbia, Switzerland, Türkiye, Tunisia, Ukraine and the United Kingdom.
The India and EU ties have witnessed a major upswing in the last few years.
The two sides are set to sign the free trade deal next month.
(With inputs from PTI)
