A long-anticipated trade pact between India and the European Union could reshape expansion prospects for Indian startups, according to diplomats gathered at Huddle Global 2026 in Thiruvananthapuram. The annual beachfront startup festival, run by Kerala Startup Mission, put four European delegations directly in front of founders eyeing Western markets.
Talks around the India-EU free trade agreement have dragged for years. Yet officials from Italy, Finland, Switzerland and Wales now describe the deal as imminent, with each nation positioning itself as an entry point for Indian technology, research and medical device companies.
Walter Ferrera, Italy’s Consul General, predicted the FTA would land “in the coming days.” He framed Italy as an industrial powerhouse and urged Indian tech ventures to partner with Italian firms. That route, he argued, offers access to the broader European single market.
Finland’s Consul General, Petra Theman, pressed a different angle. She pointed to Nokia’s journey from local telecom player to global giant as evidence of Finnish innovation capacity. Theman stressed that partnership on R&D matters more than visa liberalisation for deepening India-Finland ties.
Meanwhile, Switzerland already operates outside EU structures. Consul General Dr Angela Honegger noted her country maintains its own free trade agreement with India, alongside robust academic linkages. She cited Swissnex, Switzerland’s science diplomacy platform, and flagged joint research targeting hospital superbugs as one live initiative.
Wales brought medtech into focus. Eoghan O’Regan, the Welsh Government’s India representative, said Welsh authorities stand ready to broker partnerships between Indian startups and local companies. Such arrangements, he noted, also give founders a foothold for accessing the UK market.
Former Indian Ambassador to the Netherlands Venu Rajamani moderated the session. As the FTA negotiations enter their final phase, European officials clearly see Indian startups as a pipeline for innovation collaboration, not just trade volumes.
