Summary: Prime Minister Narendra Modi undertook a landmark visit to the Nordic region from May 17-19, 2026, as part of a broader five-nation European tour that also encompassed the UAE, the Netherlands, and Italy. The visit marked the first time an Indian Prime Minister had travelled to Norway in over four decades. In Sweden, the two countries elevated bilateral relations to a Strategic Partnership and adopted a Joint Action Plan for 2026-2030, focusing on economic and security resilience, emerging technologies, trusted connectivity, and sustainability-linked cooperation. In Norway, India and Norway elevated their bilateral relationship to a Green Strategic Partnership, marking a major expansion of cooperation across climate technology, renewable energy, maritime economy, digital systems, and innovation. At the 3rd India-Nordic Summit in Oslo, India and the Nordic countries decided to elevate their relationship to a Green Technology and Innovation Strategic Partnership. The visit signals India’s determination to build future-oriented partnerships across Europe’s northern frontier.
Introduction
Prime Minister Narendra Modi undertook a landmark visit to the Nordic region from May 17-19, 2026, as part of a broader five-nation European tour that also encompassed the UAE, the Netherlands, and Italy. This is the first time an Indian Prime Minister has travelled to Norway in over four decades.
Bilateral trade between India and the Nordic countries has nearly quadrupled over the last decade, while investments from Nordic nations into India have increased by nearly 200%. The India-Nordic Summit was the meeting’s third edition, coming just months after the India – EU Free Trade Agreement (“India-EU FTA”), and post India signing a Trade and Economic Partnership Agreement with Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway, and Switzerland ̶ the India-European Free Trade Association nations (“India-EFTA TEPA”) that entered into force on October 1,2025.
Elevating India-Sweden Relations to a Strategic Partnership and the Joint Action Plan 20262030
A Landmark Bilateral Elevation and Four-Pillar Framework
The two countries elevated their bilateral relations to a Strategic Partnership and adopted a Joint Action Plan for 2026-2030, focusing on economic and security resilience, emerging technologies, trusted connectivity, and sustainability-linked cooperation.
The Ministry of External Affairs stated that the strategic partnership would be guided by four pillars: (i) strategic dialogue for stability and security; (ii) next-generation economic partnership; (iii) emerging technologies and trusted connectivity; and (iv) shaping tomorrow together through cooperation in areas linked with people, planet, health, and resilience.
During his two-day visit to Sweden, Modi held talks with his Swedish counterpart Ulf Kristersson, focusing on trade, technology, defence, and other key areas.
The Economic Agenda: Doubling Bilateral Trade Within Five Years
India and Sweden have set a target to double bilateral trade and investment within the next five years. Annual trade between India and Sweden is currently reported to stand at USD 7.75 billion. Both nations have also agreed to enhance trade facilitation mechanisms, support and promote the Make-in-India initiative, and maintain ongoing dialogue on intellectual property rights.
Technology & Innovation: The India-Sweden Joint Innovation Partnership 2.0
India and Sweden announced the “India-Sweden Joint Innovation Partnership 2.0”, including plans for a virtual joint science and technology centre and deeper collaboration in areas such as artificial intelligence, 6G, quantum computing, critical minerals, renewable energy, and smart grid technologies.
The India-Sweden Technology and Artificial Intelligence Corridor (“SITAC”)
Both sides agreed to jointly develop the India-Sweden Technology and Artificial Intelligence Corridor (“SITAC”). The initiative will boost collaboration in AI, digital transformation, and advanced technology research, and foster deeper partnerships between industries and startups.
By merging Sweden’s innovation strengths with India’s vast scale, skilled workforce, and growth momentum, new possibilities can arise for developing future technologies. This collaboration is expected to open doors in areas such as electronics, deep-tech manufacturing, AI, infrastructure, mobility, healthcare, life sciences, and urban transformation.
Additionally, PM Modi addressed the European Round Table for Industry, where he urged European industry leaders to enhance their presence in AI, semiconductors, deep tech manufacturing, green transition and clean energy, and other sectors.
Enterprise Diplomacy: SME and Startup Platform for Employment Generation
The two countries will jointly develop an India-Sweden SME and Startup Platform to give a fillip to entrepreneurship, innovation, and employment generation, especially among the youth.
Investment and Connectivity: Maersk and the Logistics Opportunity
During the visit, PM Modi met with Robert Maersk Uggla, Chairman of Maersk, the world’s largest container shipping and logistics company. They discussed the wide range of opportunities in India, focusing particularly on increasing investments in areas such as port infrastructure, logistics, and more. Maersk currently has a well-established presence in India spanning over two decades. It had earlier this year, committed an investment pipeline of approximately $5 billion in India’s ports, terminals, and landside infrastructure. Maersk’s deeper investments are expected to further drive down India’s logistics costs, directly sharpening the competitiveness of Indian exports in global markets.
India-Norway’s Green Strategic Partnership and the Twelve Agreements
Elevation to a Green Strategic Partnership
India and Norway upgraded their ties to a Green Strategic Partnership, expanding cooperation in climate technology, renewable energy, maritime economy, digital systems, and innovation. The two countries have also renewed efforts to boost trade and investment under the India-EFTA TEPA.
Key Engagements & Outcomes: Twelve Agreements Signed
India and Norway have signed twelve agreements spanning a broad range of strategic sectors, with the most significant from an investment and regulatory standpoint being in digital infrastructure, maritime, and clean energy. On the digital front, the India-Norway Digital Development Partnership establishes a formal regulatory framework for cooperation on digital public goods and open digital ecosystems, aligned with the Digital India Mission.
In the clean energy and maritime space, the Ocean Energy implementation agreement on offshore wind and wave technologies and the CSIR-SINTEF collaboration on carbon capture, bio-based materials, and circular economy solutions open concrete avenues for technology transfer and joint investment.
The infrastructure consultancy agreement on tunnels, slope stability, and geotechnical services for Indian roads and highways offers a direct entry point for Norwegian firms into India’s infrastructure procurement market. Strategically, Norway’s accession to the Indo-Pacific Oceans Initiative aligns with India’s broader maritime security and blue economy agenda, while India’s confirmed participation at Nor Shipping 2027 with a dedicated pavilion is expected to catalyse commercial partnerships in shipbuilding, green shipping, and port infrastructure, sectors that are increasingly subject to evolving environmental and emissions regulations globally.
Maritime Power: The India-Norway Business and Research Summit
During the summit, PM Modi highlighted investment opportunities in clean energy, manufacturing, healthcare, and nutrition, and invited Norway’s sovereign wealth fund to become a partner in India’s clean energy plans. PM Modi noted that around 10% of Norwegian ships were currently being built in India and called for increasing that share to 25% within the next five years.
PM Modi reiterated the India-EFTA TEPA, which aims to bring USD 100 billion in investment into India and create one million jobs over fifteen years. Over the past decade, trade between India and Norway has doubled, and both countries have set a goal to boost economic relations even further by 2030.
The 3rd India-Nordic Summit and the Green Technology and Innovation Strategic Partnership
The 3rd India-Nordic Summit held in Oslo on May 19,2026, saw India and the Nordic countries elevate their relationship to a Green Technology and Innovation Strategic Partnership.
The key outcomes of the summit include:
- Blue Economy and Maritime Security: Joint activities are expected to be undertaken through bilateral Maritime Security Dialogues and the Indo-Pacific Oceans Initiative, in line with India’s “MAHASAGAR” vision.
- Arctic Cooperation: The summit called for an increase in India-Nordic engagement focused on the Arctic region, particularly in areas such as polar research, climate studies, and environmental issues, with both countries agreeing to pursue joint research initiatives. Norway’s Arctic expertise will serve as a key element of the new partnership, alongside Iceland’s expertise in geothermal energy and fisheries and the maritime experience of the Nordic states will further strengthen such an endeavor.
- Defence FDI: India offered 100% foreign direct investment to Nordic defence firms in India’s defence industrial corridors.
- Education, Innovation, and Next-Generation Technologies: The summit committed to strengthening linkages between universities, laboratories, and start-up ecosystems, with new opportunities in skill development and talent mobility, alongside collaboration between startups and incubators and promotion of research in next-generation communication technologies such as 6G.
Looking Ahead: India’s New Northern Horizon
The Nordic countries bring together world-class innovation capacity, substantial sovereign capital, and a shared commitment to democratic values, making them natural long-term partners for India as it scales its economic ambitions globally. The India-Nordic Summit in Oslo, where PM Modi met the leaders of Norway, Denmark, Finland, Iceland and Sweden, took place amid growing geopolitical uncertainty and increasing global focus on sustainable development.
The India-EFTA TEPA came into force in late 2025 and enshrines a unilateral commitment from EFTA countries to invest in India and create employment opportunities. Norwegian companies are already showing active interest in sectors such as energy, climate, circular economy, and electric mobility, areas where Norwegian firms carry competitive advantage built on decades of domestic experience. Beyond TEPA, Norway’s sovereign wealth fund, one of the world’s largest, already has a significant footprint in the Indian capital market.
From Sweden, the SITAC corridor is likely to generate a new category of technology transactions, co-development arrangements, joint ventures, and licensing structures in AI, quantum computing, and 6G, all in areas where India’s domestic regulatory framework is itself being shaped.
The India-EFTA TEPA and the newly concluded India-EU FTA will open new corridors for trade in goods, services, and investment that will require careful structuring. The commitments on regulatory cooperation, disciplines on non-tariff barriers, and investment facilitation mechanisms built into these agreements will increasingly inform transaction structuring and market entry strategy across India-Nordic commercial activity.
Taken alongside the key outcomes of the visit to Sweden, the twelve agreements signed with Norway, and Norway’s formal accession to the Indo-Pacific Oceans Initiative, this visit represents one of the most consequential diplomatic engagements for India in Europe.