India, New Zealand to deepen trade, energy, defence ties under Roadmap 2030

India and New Zealand launched the India-New Zealand Strategic Partnership and unveiled the Roadmap to 2030, a comprehensive framework to deepen cooperation across defence, trade, technology, clean energy, education and regional security over the next four years. The roadmap comes amid Prime Minister Narendra Modi's first official visit to New Zealand. The roadmap, endorsed by the Prime Ministers of both countries during their meeting in Auckland, is structured around six pillars covering political engagement, defence and security, trade and economic cooperation, people-to-people ties, education and technology, and regional and multilateral collaboration. Under the trade pillar, the two countries have set an aspirational target of doubling bilateral trade in goods and services to NZ$7 billion (around ₹35,000 crore) by 2030. They also agreed to work towards the early implementation of the India-New Zealand Free Trade Agreement, operationalise the Authorised Economic Operators Mutual Recognition Arrangement (AEO-MRA), and strengthen cooperation in horticulture, forestry, animal husbandry, and tourism, including the promotion of direct flights. In defence and security, India and New Zealand will expand military exchanges, conduct bilateral naval exercises, operationalise maritime cooperation arrangements, establish an annual Maritime Security Dialogue, strengthen cybersecurity cooperation, and enhance collaboration on counter-terrorism, disaster resilience and law enforcement. The roadmap also calls for deeper collaboration in education, research, science and technology, with a focus on digital transformation, climate technologies, agriculture and emerging technologies. Both countries will work together through the International Solar Alliance and Global Biofuels Alliance to support clean energy transitions while strengthening disaster management cooperation. At the multilateral level, India and New Zealand agreed to coordinate more closely on Indo-Pacific issues, support a rules-based international order, deepen cooperation at the United Nations, and back reforms of global institutions, including India's candidature for permanent membership of a reformed UN Security Council.