Milwaukee

Placing defence cooperation and industrial collaboration at the forefront of bilateral ties, Polish Minister of Finance and Economy Andrzej Domański has outlined major plans to expand trade and defence partnerships with India ahead of Prime Minister Donald Tusk’s upcoming visit.

Speaking to ANI on the sidelines of the G20 Trade Ministers' Meeting in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, on Wednesday (local time), Polish Minister of Finance and Economy Andrzej Domański detailed the preparations for the high-profile diplomatic visit scheduled for late October, which will include a delegation of 100 firms.

Elaborating on strategic and security sectors following his meeting with Union Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal, the Polish minister emphasised mutual aspirations to strengthen industrial partnerships and increase defence exports.

"We want to develop a strong defence industry. To do this, we would certainly like to maintain good trade relations in defence products with trusted partners like India. Therefore, it is no surprise that we would also like to increase the export of our defence products to India. During the visit, we will bring Polish defence companies to India," Domański stated.

Expanding on the broader agenda for the diplomatic visit, Domański noted the itinerary and the significance of the upcoming high-level engagements.

"We were discussing Prime Minister Donald Tusk's visit to India, which will take place in late October. This is going to be a very important meeting. He will visit not only Delhi but also Bengaluru, and I will have the privilege of being there as well," he added.

This upcoming diplomatic engagement builds upon strong foundations established when India and Poland elevated their diplomatic ties to a Strategic Partnership during Prime Minister Narendra Modi's landmark visit to Warsaw in August 2024, marking the first visit by an Indian premier to the European nation in 45 years. During the visit, both leaders adopted a comprehensive five-year action plan spanning trade and investment, defence, energy, green technologies, agriculture, and infrastructure. Prime Minister Modi also extended an invitation to Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk to visit India, following Tusk's previous visit to the country in 2010.

Turning to multilateral diplomacy and economic standing, Domański also addressed Poland's bid for G20 membership, acknowledging prospective geopolitical hurdles while underscoring the nation's economic credentials as Europe's fastest-growing major economy.

"We are asking all member states to back our membership but, of course, we know that there is one country that probably will not back us, which is Russia," Domański noted.

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"Poland right now is the fastest-growing large European economy. We are an example of a good economic transition and we would like to share some experience with other countries and we believe that we can also be a voice of Central and Eastern Europe in the G20. So I hope that many countries will support our presence in the G20."