PM Modi’s Croatia visit: India expands its outreach in Europe

As India looks to expand its engagement with Europe beyond the traditional Western European countries, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s recent visit to Croatia, a nation strategically located at the crossroads of Central Europe and the Mediterranean, and the geopolitical significance of which is further enhanced by its access to the Adriatic sea, has opened up a new chapter in Indian foreign policy. Croatia is also a strategic link in the ambitious India–Middle East–Europe Economic Corridor (IMEC).

Croatia’s entry into NATO (2009), the EU (2013), the Schengen Zone, and adoption of the Euro in 2023, also makes it an important member in the Western institutional framework. On June 18 2025, , the Indian Prime Minister paid an official visit to Croatia at the invitation of Croatian Prime Minister Andrej Plenković.

This was also the first ever visit by an Indian Prime Minister to the country since it declared its independence in 1991 from the erstwhile Yugoslavia.