Press Release: President Barroso to attend 7th EU-India Summit in Helsinki on 13 October 2006

The EU and India will hold their 7th Summit meeting on 13 October 2006 in Helsinki. The Summit, hosted by the Finnish Prime Minister, Mr Matti Vanhanen, on behalf of the Finnish Presidency, will be attended by European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso, External Relations Commissioner Benita Ferrero-Waldner and Trade Commissioner Peter Mandelson. Mr Javier Solana, High Representative for the Common Foreign and Security Policy, will also be present. The Summit agenda will cover EU-India relations including implementation of the Joint Action Plan adopted at the last Summit (Delhi, September 2005) and it will endorse the recommendations of the EU-India High Level Trade Group on ways to further enhance bilateral trade and investment. Issues of global concern scheduled for discussion include effective multilateralism, climate change and energy, counter terrorism, and non-proliferation. Regional issues will also be discussed, including Iran, Burma/Myanmar,and Sri Lanka.