Netherlands welcomes PM Modi on second leg of five-nation tour

Prime Minister Narendra Modi arrived in the Netherlands on Friday for a visit aimed at expanding India’s cooperation with the European nation in key sectors including technology, semiconductors, defence, renewable energy and trade. The trip comes as India and the European Union move ahead with a newly finalised free trade agreement that officials believe could significantly deepen economic ties across the region.

During the visit, Modi is scheduled to hold talks with Dutch Prime Minister Rob Jetten and meet King Willem-Alexander and Queen Maxima. He is also expected to interact with members of the Indian community and leading Dutch business executives.

Soon after landing in Amsterdam, Modi highlighted the economic significance of the visit in a social media post.

“Landed in Amsterdam. This visit to the Netherlands comes at a time when the India-EU Free Trade Agreement has given a major impetus to trade and investment linkages,” the prime minister said.

“It offers an opportunity to deepen relations in areas like semiconductors, water, clean energy and more,” he added.

The Prime Minister also said he was looking forward to holding talks with Jetten, calling on the Dutch royal family and addressing the Indian diaspora during a community event.

At the airport, Modi was received by Rear Admiral Ludger Brummelaar, Adjutant-General and Chief of the Military Household of His Majesty the King, Dutch Foreign Minister Tom Berendsen, India’s Ambassador to the Netherlands Kumar Tuhin and other senior Dutch officials.

The visit marks Modi’s second trip to the Netherlands since 2017 and follows a short stopover in Abu Dhabi, where he held discussions with UAE President Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan.

According to the Ministry of External Affairs, the visit carries a “rich and substantive agenda” and is expected to strengthen the strategic dimensions of India-Netherlands relations that have evolved through years of engagement between the two countries.

MEA spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said the visit would provide an “opportunity to further strengthen the multifaceted India-Netherlands partnership and to engage with the largest Indian diaspora on mainland Europe”.

India and the Netherlands have expanded ties well beyond traditional areas such as trade, agriculture and water management in recent years. Cooperation has increasingly moved into strategic sectors including innovation, defence, maritime security, education, semiconductors and renewable energy.

The Netherlands remains one of India’s most important economic partners in Europe. Bilateral trade between the two countries stood at USD 27.8 billion in 2024-25, while Dutch investments in India have reached USD 55.6 billion, making the Netherlands India’s fourth-largest foreign investor.

Officials also underlined the strong people-to-people connection between the two countries. More than 90,000 non-resident Indians and persons of Indian origin live in the Netherlands, along with over 200,000 members of the Suriname-Hindustani community. Around 3,500 Indian students are currently studying at Dutch universities.

Modi’s Netherlands visit is part of his wider multi-nation tour that also includes Sweden, Norway and Italy, taking place amid growing momentum in India’s economic engagement with Europe following the India-EU Free Trade Agreement and the India-EFTA Trade and Economic Partnership Agreement signed earlier this year.

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