The 11th EU-India Human Rights Dialogue was held in New Delhi on Wednesday 8 January and was co-chaired by Piyush Srivastava, Joint Secretary in India’s Ministry of External Affairs, and Hervé Delphin, EU Ambassador to India.
The two parties began by congratulating the Indian and European voters on their participation “in the two greatest democratic processes of 2024”, through the Indian general elections and the European elections of June 2024, as stated in a joint press release issued at the end of the dialogue.
They then reviewed progress and challenges in promoting human rights, reaffirming their shared commitment to democracy, freedom and the Rule of law.
Civil, political, social and cultural rights, freedom of religion or belief, equality between men and women, the rights of LGBTQI+ people and freedom of expression and opinion were among the main issues addressed.
India emphasised the right to development, while the EU reiterated its opposition to capital punishment. The two sides stressed the importance of cooperation in multilateral fora and work on humanitarian aid, and stated that they looked forward to continuing the dialogue in 2026. (Original version in French by Pauline Denys)