Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s four-nation Europe tour beginning May 15 will focus on expanding India’s strategic and economic footprint across the continent, with trade, advanced technologies, green transition, defence manufacturing and innovation partnerships emerging as key pillars of engagement.Following his UAE visit, Modi will travel to the Netherlands, Sweden, Norway and Italy till May 20, with the third India-Nordic Summit in Oslo expected to provide fresh momentum to India’s outreach to northern Europe.The visit comes soon after the conclusion of the India-EU Free Trade Agreement negotiations and the signing of the India-EU Security and Defence Partnership framework earlier this year.Briefing the media, Secretary (West) Sibi George said the European leg of the tour would revolve around India’s “three Ts” — trade, technology and talent — as New Delhi seeks to position itself as a trusted manufacturing and innovation partner.In the Netherlands, Modi will hold talks with Dutch Prime Minister Dick Schoof and meet King Willem-Alexander and Queen Máxima. Discussions are expected to focus on semiconductors, maritime cooperation, renewable energy, agriculture, water management and defence technology.The Netherlands hosts over 90,000 Indians and persons of Indian origin, besides a large Surinamese-Hindustani community of more than 2 lakh people.From the Netherlands, Modi will travel to Gothenburg in Sweden on May 17 for talks centred on AI, green transition, resilient supply chains and defence cooperation.India and Sweden are expected to advance their technology partnership further after both countries earlier this year launched the Sweden-India Technology and AI Corridor during the AI Action Summit.Modi will also attend a high-level pan-European CEOs’ forum where European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen is expected to participate alongside industry leaders from across Europe and the UK.Officials highlighted Sweden’s growing defence footprint in India, particularly Swedish aerospace major Saab’s Carl-Gustaf manufacturing facility in Haryana — its first such plant outside Sweden.Norway will host the third India-Nordic Summit on May 19, bringing together leaders from Norway, Denmark, Finland, Iceland and Sweden. The summit is expected to focus on clean technologies, Arctic cooperation, renewable energy, digitisation and sustainable industrial transition.MEA officials said India’s trade with Nordic countries had touched nearly USD 19 billion, while over 700 Nordic firms currently operate in India.Modi’s visit to Norway will also mark the first bilateral visit by an Indian Prime Minister to the country in over four decades. Discussions are likely to cover offshore wind, carbon capture, battery technologies, Arctic research and space cooperation.India and Norway have also expanded collaboration in the Arctic region, while ISRO recently installed antennas at the KSAT facility in Svalbard.The final leg of the tour will take Modi to Italy, where he will hold talks with Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni and meet President Sergio Mattarella.The India-Italy strategic partnership has witnessed rapid expansion in recent years, with the two leaders meeting seven times since 2023. Bilateral trade has already crossed 40 billion euros.Defence industrial collaboration, maritime security, counter-terror financing, clean energy and advanced manufacturing are expected to dominate discussions in Rome.Modi will also visit the headquarters of the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), underlining India’s emphasis on food security, sustainable agriculture and multilateral cooperation.Officials said several agreements and MoUs were expected during the tour, which is being viewed as India’s most expansive diplomatic outreach to Europe in recent years amid shifting geopolitical and economic alignments.