What Modi, the first Indian PM to visit New Zealand in 40 years, achieved during the trip

Prime Minister Narendra Modi's two-day visit to Auckland on July 10-11, marked a watershed moment in India-New Zealand relations, with the two countries elevating their bilateral ties to a Strategic Partnership for the first time.

The visit was was the first by an Indian prime minister to New Zealand in four decades.

The centrepiece of the visit was the decision by Modi and his New Zealand counterpart Christopher Luxon to adopt a Strategic Partnership backed by a comprehensive "Roadmap to 2030", alongside a broad package of agreements spanning defence, maritime security, trade, agriculture, disaster management, tourism, sports, culture and scientific cooperation.

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The upgraded relationship also adds New Zealand to the growing list of countries with which India has formal Strategic Partnership arrangements, highlighting New Delhi's expanding diplomatic outreach across the Indo-Pacific, Europe, West Asia and other regions.

India-New Zealand Strategic Partnership: What was agreed?

The two leaders announced 18 outcomes during the visit, including 10 agreements and Memorandums of Understanding (MoUs), laying down an ambitious framework to deepen cooperation over the coming years.

At the heart of the new partnership is the Roadmap to 2030, a four-year action plan intended to guide cooperation across defence, trade, maritime security, tourism, agriculture, sports, scientific research, people-to-people exchanges and multilateral engagement.

Trade emerged as one of the biggest priorities. Building on the India-New Zealand Free Trade Agreement (FTA) signed earlier this year, both governments committed themselves to doubling bilateral trade to NZ$7 billion (around Rs 35,000 crore) by 2030.

The defence relationship also witnessed a significant expansion.

India and New Zealand concluded a Mutual Logistics Support Arrangement that will enable reciprocal logistical assistance between the Indian Navy and the New Zealand Defence Force, allowing access to each other's facilities for refuelling, replenishment and maintenance during deployments.

Both countries also signed a Memorandum of Arrangement on Maritime Cooperation aimed at strengthening dialogue, operational coordination, information sharing and joint activities across the Indo-Pacific.

In another important step, agreements covering hydrography and nautical cartography will facilitate the joint preparation of navigational charts, sharing of hydrographic information and capacity building.

The two governments also decided to establish a Maritime Security Dialogue to institutionalise discussions on regional maritime challenges.

As part of India's Indo-Pacific Oceans Initiative (IPOI), New Zealand announced that it would lead the Maritime Security pillar, with particular emphasis on combating Illegal, Unreported and Unregulated (IUU) fishing.

Security cooperation was further strengthened through the creation of a Joint Working Group on Counter-Terrorism, designed to enhance intelligence sharing, coordination and cooperation against terrorism.

What was agreed beyond defence?

India's National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) and New Zealand's National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) also signed a Memorandum of Cooperation focused on earthquake resilience, tsunami preparedness, coastal hazard mitigation, policy dialogue and capacity building.

Agriculture also featured prominently. The two countries concluded a Memorandum of Cooperation on Animal Husbandry and Dairying to promote technical collaboration, exchange of expertise and sharing of best practices.

A new Kiwifruit Action Plan was launched under the Agricultural Productivity Partnership, accompanied by the announcement of two Centres of Excellence for Kiwifruit in Nagaland and Uttarakhand to support agricultural innovation, productivity and skills development.

Tourism cooperation received a fresh boost through an agreement intended to increase visitor flows while strengthening cultural and economic ties.

Sports collaboration was also expanded through the India-New Zealand Joint Action Plan on Sport, covering athlete development, sports science, sports medicine and high-performance training.

On the cultural front, both sides signed agreements covering cultural cooperation and maritime heritage, including collaboration between the National Maritime Heritage Complex (NMHC) at Lothal in Gujarat and the New Zealand Maritime Museum.

Scientific cooperation also gained momentum. India's National Centre for Polar and Ocean Research (NCPOR), Goa, will work with the University of Canterbury on Antarctic research, while NIFTEM-Kundli and Massey University agreed to deepen research collaboration, student exchanges and academic mobility.

In the clean energy sector, New Zealand announced its decision to join the Global Biofuels Alliance, further expanding cooperation on sustainable energy and biofuels.

What about the India-New Zealand Free Trade Agreement?

The Strategic Partnership builds upon the India-New Zealand Free Trade Agreement signed in New Delhi on April 27 earlier this year.

Described by India's Commerce Ministry as a "once-in-a-generation agreement", the FTA was concluded in just nine months after negotiations resumed in March 2025, making it one of India's fastest-negotiated trade agreements.

Although the agreement has been signed, it is yet to enter into force.

As of July, legal teams in both countries are completing technical scrutiny of the text while enabling legislation moves through the Indian and New Zealand parliaments. New Zealand's opposition Labour Party has also pledged bipartisan support to speed up ratification.

Both governments are aiming for the agreement to become operational before the end of 2026.

What India gains

Once implemented, New Zealand will provide immediate duty-free access to all Indian exports.

The move removes tariffs ranging from 2.2 per cent to 10 per cent on products including textiles, apparel, leather goods, footwear, gems and jewellery, pharmaceuticals, medical devices and marine products.

The agreement also includes a proposed US$20 billion investment commitment from New Zealand into Indian infrastructure and green energy projects over the next 15 years.

For professionals, the FTA offers improved mobility through faster visa processing for Indian IT professionals, engineers and healthcare workers, while also extending official recognition to AYUSH practitioners, yoga instructors and Indian chefs.

What New Zealand gains

India has agreed to gradually liberalise around 70 per cent of its tariff lines, accounting for about 95 per cent of New Zealand's exports to India.

However, these concessions will largely be phased in over five to ten years or managed through quotas. Tariff reductions will apply to products such as wool, wood logs and coking coal.

Wine duties will be lowered gradually over a decade, subject to minimum import price conditions.

New Zealand apples, cherries, kiwifruit and avocados will receive either duty-free or reduced-duty access within annual quota limits.

India's protected sectors

India has retained complete protection for several sensitive sectors.

No tariff concessions have been granted for dairy products, including milk, butter, cheese, cream, yoghurt and infant formula ingredients.

Other protected sectors include onions, pulses, sugar, spices and edible oils, reflecting New Delhi's effort to shield vulnerable agricultural producers.

Why does the partnership matter strategically?

The elevation of ties comes amid growing geopolitical competition in the Indo-Pacific. The partnership strengthens cooperation in maritime security while expanding defence engagement and economic integration between two democratic nations.

For New Zealand, the enhanced relationship supports efforts to diversify strategic and economic partnerships.

For India, the agreement reinforces its broader Indo-Pacific strategy while adding another key partner to its expanding regional engagement.

To ensure implementation moves beyond announcements, both governments have outlined an initial rollout plan.

The two sides intend to complete FTA ratification during this year, convene the first Maritime Security Dialogue later this year and begin joint agricultural technical initiatives in early 2027 focusing on food safety, cold-chain technology, sustainable dairy production and horticulture.

How many Strategic Partnerships does India have?

With New Zealand joining the list, India now has formal Strategic Partnerships — or equivalent higher-level strategic arrangements — with approximately 46 countries and regional blocs.

India first adopted the Strategic Partnership framework with France in 1997.

Over nearly three decades, the model has expanded significantly under successive governments, particularly through the "Act East" policy and wider Indo-Pacific engagement.

Among India's earliest strategic partners are France (1997), Russia (2000), the United States, United Kingdom and European Union (2004), China and Indonesia (2005), Australia and Kazakhstan (2009), followed by Japan, the UAE, Singapore and Bangladesh during 2014-15.

In more recent years, India has expanded such arrangements with Israel, Egypt, Italy, Greece, Poland, Brunei, Kuwait, Qatar, the Philippines, Thailand, Sweden, Cyprus and now New Zealand.

India employs different classifications to reflect the depth of its international relationships. A Strategic Partnership represents institutional cooperation that extends beyond trade into defence, political dialogue and security coordination.

A Comprehensive Strategic Partnership denotes broader engagement covering multiple sectors such as defence, technology, infrastructure, digital cooperation and economic integration. Countries such as Australia, Vietnam and the UAE fall into this category.

India reserves Special Strategic Partnership designations for a select group of exceptionally close partners. Japan is described as a Special Strategic and Global Partner, reflecting cooperation under the Quad and extensive infrastructure collaboration.

Russia, meanwhile, holds the status of a Special and Privileged Strategic Partnership owing to decades of defence cooperation, military ties and civil nuclear collaboration.

Separate from these modern classifications are long-standing treaty arrangements, such as India's 1949 Treaty of Friendship with Bhutan, which predates the current strategic partnership framework and provides a unique legal foundation for bilateral cooperation.

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With inputs from agencies