Narendra Modi will visit Croatia on June 18. This will be the first visit by an Indian prime minister to this Balkan country, signaling a strengthening of ties with the European Union.

Modi will visit the EU member state on his way back from the G7 summit in Canada, after stopping in Cyprus earlier.

The Croatian newspaper Vecernji List reported that the main focus of the discussions will be the proposed trade route between Europe, the Middle East, and India.

This investment will compete with Beijing's “One Belt, One Road” initiative, AFP reported.

“As the first visit by an Indian prime minister to Croatia, it will open new avenues for bilateral cooperation,” Modi said before the trip.

He will meet with his Croatian counterpart Andrej Plenković and President Zoran Milanović in Zagreb. The visit was originally scheduled for mid-May but was postponed due to escalating tensions between India and Pakistan.

European leaders are increasingly turning to other trading partners in response to US President Donald Trump's tariffs on the bloc, which are set to increase in July.

The EU is India's second-largest trading partner. In 2024, it traded goods worth €120 billion, more than 11% of India's total trade, according to the EU.

First proposed in 2023, the India-Middle East-Europe Economic Corridor will be a rail and sea route connecting the regions and is seen as a potential counterweight to growing Chinese investment.

Although trade between India and Croatia remains relatively small, the European country, which suffers from a chronic labor shortage, is attracting more and more Indian workers.

In recent years, China has poured billions of dollars into the Balkans to expand its economic footprint in Central Europe. | BGNES