The bilateral relations between Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his Italian counterpart Giorgia Meloni have reached a level of strategic partnership since March, with Rome’s naval expertise in the Adriatic Sea adding a strategic advantage for India in the Indo-Pacific region. However, things have not been smooth between India and Italy.
The Dispute Between India and Italy
Although the two countries have shared warmer relations since India gained independence from the British Empire in 1947, the bilateral dispute arose in 2012 when two Italian marines were accused of killing Indian fishermen off the southern coast of Kerala.
The marines claimed that they believed the fishermen were pirates, and Italy argued that the fishermen did not respond to warnings to stay away from the tanker “Enrica Lexie” on which they were on board. The marines were arrested and charged with murder.
The case was moved from Kerala to New Delhi. Things escalated. The marines remained in the Italian embassy while the trial was ongoing.
As the trial continued, the accused marines were allowed to return to Italy.
In 2015, New Delhi and Rome brought the case to the Permanent Court of Arbitration in The Hague on behalf of India.
The Permanent Court of Arbitration ordered Italy to pay 100 million rupees as compensation to India “for the loss of lives.”
Finally, the case was closed in 2021.
Efforts to Repair India-Italy Relations Before the Friendly “Meloni”
In September 2016, former Indian Foreign Minister Sushma Swaraj led an official delegation to attend the canonization of Indian-Albanian social reformer Mother Teresa at the Vatican City. While the Catholic canonization in St. Peter’s Square under the supervision of Pope Francis drew clear religious enthusiasm, the halls of diplomacy saw a significant bilateral breakthrough between Indian Foreign Minister Sushma Swaraj and her Italian counterpart Paolo Gentiloni.
Swaraj and Gentiloni decided that their countries would celebrate the seventieth anniversary of diplomatic relations between India and Italy. In 2018, Indian-Italian relations were celebrated with cultural events in both India and Italy.
In December 2019, during the term of current Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, current Foreign Minister Dr. S. Jaishankar visited Rome and met with Giorgia Meloni’s predecessor, former Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte.
Jaishankar’s visit to Italy in December 2019 came months after Italy – in March 2019 – became the first G7 country to join China’s Belt and Road Initiative (BRI). This is a Chinese project for intercontinental connectivity that India opposes as it passes through part of Indian-administered Jammu and Kashmir that is under Pakistani and Chinese occupation, respectively.
The groundwork was laid for an upcoming India-Italy summit in 2020.
Amid the COVID-19 pandemic, a virtual summit between India and Italy was held in November 2020. The summit witnessed the adoption of the 2020-2025 action plan, which established an ambitious agenda for enhanced partnership between the two countries.
A total of 15 memoranda of understanding were signed covering areas such as energy, media, finance, and shipbuilding.
Both sides emphasized “the need to expand defense engagement through mutual cooperation, technological collaboration, and joint development and production, by accelerating discussions through the Joint Defence Committee and the Military Cooperation Group.”
India-Italy Relations: The China Factor
India and Italy were on the same page when consensus was reached on an economic corridor between India, the Middle East, and Europe, which was widely welcomed as a response to China’s Belt and Road Initiative.
Italy’s withdrawal from the Belt and Road Initiative this month has brought a specific bilateral convergence concerning shared interests between Rome and New Delhi regarding global connectivity.
Conclusion
India-Italy relations have seen significant improvement in recent years, with the bilateral relationship being elevated to a level of strategic partnership. The economic, cultural, and defense relations between the two countries are crucial for enhancing cooperation and achieving shared interests.
On
Despite some past disagreements, relations between India and Italy are witnessing continuous improvement and deeper cooperation in various fields, enhancing the cultural and economic ties between the two countries.
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