The EU is seeking new trade partnerships. Here's why

BRUSSELS -- The ambitious free trade agreement between the European Union and India underscores the EU's efforts to ink new global partnerships at a time when the Trump administration has rattled the region's capitals which have long relied on a stable relationship with Washington on trade, defense and diplomacy.The agreement announced Tuesday reflects a new priority for the 27-nation EU, the world's largest trading bloc, after President Donald Trump threatened to impose tariffs because of opposition to American control of Greenland, only to back off days later.It follows trade deals struck or pending over the past year with India, Japan, Indonesia, Mexico and the five Mercosur nations of South America.“The international order we relied upon for decades is no longer a given,” said Nikos Christodoulides, president of Cyprus, in a speech last week at the European Parliament.

He was outlining Cyprus' priorities as the island nation begins its six-month term at the helm of the EU.“This moment calls for action, decisive, credible and united action.It calls for a union that is more autonomous and open to the world," said Christodoulides, echoing widespread sentiment across the bloc.After attending a military parade in New Delhi, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen signed the free trade agreement to deepen economic and strategic ties with India.

She called it the “mother of all deals.” The pact could affect as many as 2 billion people and slash tariffs on nearly 97% of EU exports to India like cars and wine, and 99% of India’s shipments of goods like textiles and medicines to the EU.“Europe and India need each other today like never before,” said Garima Mohan, a senior fellow at the German Marshall Fund.She said that both Brussels and New Delhi had long sought closer ties as a counterweight to China's economic rise.

But the abrasiveness of the Trump administration on economic and security issues cinched the deal.“This movement towards d...