PM Modi arrives in Netherlands on second leg of five-nation tour

PM Modi was received at the airport by Rear Admiral Ludger Brummelaar, Adjutant-General and Chief of the Military Household of His Majesty the King; Dutch Foreign Minister Tom Berendsen; and India’s Ambassador to the Netherlands Kumar Tuhi. PM Modi was received at the airport by Rear Admiral Ludger Brummelaar, Adjutant-General and Chief of the Military Household of His Majesty the King; Dutch Foreign Minister Tom Berendsen; and India’s Ambassador to the Netherlands Kumar Tuhin, along with other senior officials of the Dutch Government.“Landed in Amsterdam. This visit to the Netherlands comes at a time when the India-E.U. Free Trade Agreement has given a major impetus to trade and investment linkages,” the Prime Minister said in a social media post soon after his arrival.“It offers an opportunity to deepen relations in areas like semiconductors, water, clean energy and more,” he added.Mr. Modi said he would hold talks with Prime Minister Jetten and call on King Willem-Alexander and Queen Maxima.The Prime Minister also said he looked forward to addressing a community programme during the visit.The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal, in a social media post, said the visit would provide an "opportunity to further strengthen the multifaceted India-Netherlands partnership and to engage with the largest Indian diaspora on mainland Europe".Mr. Modi arrived in the Netherlands after a brief stopover of around two-and-a-half hours in the United Arab Emirates, where he held talks with UAE President Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan in Abu Dhabi.The PM's visit to the European nation from May 15 to 17 is his second trip to the country after his 2017 visit and comes at what officials described as an "important juncture" in India-Netherlands ties.Mr. Modi is also expected to interact with leading Dutch business leaders during the visit.MEA officials said the visit carries a “rich and substantive agenda” and is expected to consolidate the strategic dimensions of the partnership that have emerged through sustained engagement between the two countries.India and the Netherlands have significantly expanded cooperation in recent years beyond traditional sectors such as trade, investment and the priority areas of water, agriculture, and health.The partnership has grown in strategic sectors, including technology, innovation, defence, security, semiconductors, renewable energy, education and the maritime domain, the MEA said.The Netherlands is one of India’s largest trade destinations in Europe, with bilateral trade valued at $27.8 billion in 2024-25. It is also India’s fourth-largest investor, with cumulative foreign direct investment amounting to $55.6 billion, officials said.People-to-people ties remain a key pillar of the bilateral relationship.The Netherlands is home to more than 90,000 non-resident Indians and persons of Indian origin, besides over 200,000 members of the Suriname-Hindustani community. Around 3,500 Indian students are currently enrolled in Dutch universities.Officials noted that Mr. Modi's visit to the Netherlands and three other European nations — Sweden, Norway, and Italy — comes against the backdrop of the India-E.U. Free Trade Agreement finalised earlier this year and the India-EFTA Trade and Economic Partnership Agreement signed in 2025. Published - May 16, 2026 07:02 am IST