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The Independent UK
The Independent UK
World
Sam McNeil

The EU is seeking new trade partnerships. Here's why

APTOPIX India EU - (Copyright 2026 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.)

The ambitious free trade agreement between the European Union and India underscores the EU's efforts to ink new global partnerships at a time when the Trump administration has rattled the region's capitals which have long relied on a stable relationship with Washington on trade, defense and diplomacy.

The agreement announced Tuesday reflects a new priority for the 27-nation EU, the world's largest trading bloc, after President Donald Trump threatened to impose tariffs because of opposition to American control of Greenland, only to back off days later. It follows trade deals struck or pending over the past year with India, Japan, Indonesia, Mexico and the five Mercosur nations of South America.

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