Polish PM Donald Tusk Likely to Visit India in October to Boost Ties

Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk is expected to travel to India next month, with preparations under way for a visit spanning October 21 to 24 that would include stops in Delhi and Bangalore.

The trip is intended to strengthen economic, political and strategic cooperation between the two countries. Poland has grown into one of Europe's more significant economies and has been at the forefront of the geopolitical response to the Russia-Ukraine war, giving the engagement added weight.

Tusk has led Poland since 2023, having earlier served as prime minister from 2007 to 2014. He was president of the European Council from 2014 to 2019 and headed the European People's Party from 2019 to 2022. His last state visit to India was in September 2010, when Manmohan Singh was prime minister.

He has been an early advocate of a trade agreement between India and the European Union, which is expected to be signed by December, when Prime Minister Narendra Modi is due to visit Brussels.

The upcoming visit is reciprocal, coming more than two years after Modi's official trip to Poland on August 21-22, 2024, which marked the 70th anniversary of diplomatic relations. That visit was the first by an Indian prime minister in 45 years, after Morarji Desai's 1979 trip, and its main outcome was a decision to elevate bilateral ties to a Strategic Partnership.

In recent years the two sides have expanded cooperation in defence and space. Officials in Delhi and Warsaw are working to conclude a set of outcomes in these areas during Tusk's visit. They are also examining collaboration in port infrastructure, shipbuilding and marine technology, seen as a link to a range of services with both military and civilian applications.

Poland's Deputy Foreign Minister Władysław Teofil Bartoszewski, who met a group of Indian journalists in Warsaw, said both countries want to move from strategic statements to concrete cooperation in the defence industry and supply-chain resilience. He said they are exploring joint production and common platforms rather than only bilateral sales of defence equipment.

A team from India's Ministry of Defence is expected in Warsaw in the coming weeks for a working group meeting with Polish counterparts, helping set the stage for agreements to be signed and announced during the prime minister's visit. The two sides are also working on a joint statement on the bilateral partnership and an action plan for 2024-2028 to implement the future strategic partnership.

Diplomatic relations were established in 1954, with the Indian embassy opening in Warsaw in 1957. The countries shared common positions rooted in opposition to colonialism, imperialism and racism. Ties were close during the Communist era, with regular high-level exchanges, including Jawaharlal Nehru's visit in 1955, and planned trade underpinned by rupee clearing arrangements.

The relationship remained strong after Poland adopted a democratic path in 1989. Officials describe a cordial political relationship in the current century, particularly after Poland joined the European Union in 2004 and became India's key economic partner in Central Europe.