Poland PM Tusk's visit aims to boost Polish investment in India; defence key focus

Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk arrives in India later today with one of the largest business delegations Warsaw has sent in years, as both sides look to convert growing trade into greater investment. He is accompanied by Finance and Economy Minister Andrzej Domański and representatives of about 100 Polish companies. While political talks are expected to dominate headlines, officials say the India-Poland Business Forums in New Delhi on 22 October and Bengaluru in the following days may prove more significant for the relationship’s direction.

Bilateral trade reached $6.36bn in 2025, a rise of nearly 10%, making Poland India’s largest trading and investment partner in Central and Eastern Europe. The flows remain uneven. Polish figures put trade at €5.68bn, with exports to India of €1.37bn against imports of €4.32bn.

The investment gap is wider still. Polish direct investment in India stands at roughly $750m, ranking Poland about 35th among foreign investors. Indian investment in Poland is considerably larger, with major IT companies including Tata Consultancy Services, Infosys, HCL and Wipro employing nearly 10,000 Polish professionals.

Distance, limited familiarity and caution over sensitive technology have constrained Polish investors. Several factors now favour closer ties. Poland has become the world’s 20th-largest economy after crossing the $1tn mark.

An India-EU free trade agreement, concluded in January after almost two decades of talks, is due to be signed by the end of the year and could enter into force in 2027, though a separate investment protection deal remains pending. Poland has set a target of at least $10bn in bilateral trade with India.

Sectors under discussion include defence, space, artificial intelligence, green and hydrogen energy, food processing, agriculture and deep mining. Defence is seen as one of the quicker routes to investment, helped by India’s Uttar Pradesh Defence Industrial Corridor, which has already attracted proposals worth nearly 400bn rupees ($4.8bn).

One Polish company has already tested the model. WB Electronics India, a joint venture with Poland’s WB Group, supplies the Warmate loitering munition to the Indian Army and is developing a production line in the corridor. The group’s president, Piotr Wojciechowski, has described India not only as a market but as a big industrial partner for production, with investment intended to serve other countries as well as India. New Delhi, which recorded defence exports of more than 384bn rupees in 2025-26, has sought partners willing to support its export ambitions.