Argentina–India relations
 | |
 Argentina |
 India |
|---|---|
| Diplomatic mission | |
| Embassy of Argentina, New Delhi | Embassy of India, Buenos Aires |
| Envoy | |
| Argentine Ambassador to India Mariano Caucino | Indian Ambassador to Argentina Dinesh Bhatia |
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Bilateral relations between the Argentine Republic and the Republic of India, have existed for decades. Argentina has an embassy in Delhi and a Consulate General in Mumbai whilst India has an embassy in Buenos Aires. Both countries are members of G20, Group of 24 and Group of 77.
History
[edit]
Rabindranath Tagore visited Argentina in 1924. He stayed there for two months as the guest of Victoria Ocampo. Tagore wrote a series of poems under the title "Purabi" about his stay in Argentina.[1] Victoria Ocampo was awarded an honorary doctorate by the Viswa Bharati University in 1968.[2]
India opened a Trade Commission in Buenos Aires in 1943. This was converted into an embassy on 3 February 1949. Argentina had established a consulate in Calcutta in the 1920s. In 1950, it was transferred to Delhi as an embassy. Argentina opened a Consulate General in Mumbai in April 2009.[2]
Argentine President Arturo Frondizi visited India in December 1961, the first state visit by an Argentine President. President Reynaldo Bignone visited in 1983 to attend the NAM summit. President Raul Alfonsin was the chief guest on Republic Day in 1985. President Carlos Menem visited India in March 1994 and President Cristina Kirchner in October 2009.[2] Mauricio Macri visited India in February 2019 as President of Argentina. President Alberto Fernandez Visited India in September 2023 to attend the G 20 Summit in New Delhi.
In 1968, Indira Gandhi became the first Indian Prime Minister to visit Argentina.[3][4] President Zail Singh visited the country in April 1984. P. V. Narasimha Rao visited Argentina in 1995 to attend the G-15 Summit.[2] In 2025, Prime Minister Narendra Modi became the first Indian Prime Minister to visit Argentina in 57 years.[5]
Economic relations
[edit]Several India companies such as TCS, Wipro, CRISIL, Bajaj, Cellent, United Phosphorus Ltd (UPL), Synthesis Quimica, Glenmar and Godrej operate in Argentina. They employ 7000 Argentines as of 2013. ONGC signed a MoU with ENARSA for possible joint ventures in Argentina for oil exploration.[2]
Argentine companies operating in India include IMPSA, Biosidus and BAGO.[2]
Indian investment in the country totaled $930 million in 2013. Argentine investment in India totalled $120 million in 2013.[2] In 2024, Indian investment in the third quarter was US$613 million.
Trade
[edit]A preferential trade agreement between India and Mercosur (of which Argentina is a member) came into operation in 2009.[6]
Bilateral trade
[edit]Bilateral trade between India and Argentina reached US$6.4 billion in 2022. In both 2021 and 2022, India emerged as Argentina's fourth-largest trading partner, with Argentina playing a vital role in supplying edible oils—especially soybean oil—to the Indian market. In 2023, bilateral trade was significantly impacted by Argentina's severe drought and a foreign exchange crisis, resulting in a sharp 39% decline, with total trade falling to US$3.9 billion.[7]
Exports
[edit]Specific trading data for the most recent available dates:[8][9]
Argentina Exports to India
[edit]| Commodity | Value | Year |
|---|---|---|
| Animal, vegetable fats and oils, cleavage products | $3.26B | 2024 |
| Commodities not specified according to kind | $469.73M | 2024 |
| Pearls, precious stones, metals, coins | $129.84M | 2024 |
| Raw hides and skins (other than furskins) and leather | $34.34M | 2024 |
| Organic chemicals | $14.69M | 2024 |
| Miscellaneous chemical products | $10.15M | 2024 |
| Wood and articles of wood, wood charcoal | $8.41M | 2024 |
| Machinery, nuclear reactors, boilers | $4.02M | 2024 |
| Tanning, dyeing extracts, tannins, derivatives, pigments | $1.68M | 2024 |
| Optical, photo, technical, medical apparatus | $1.47M | 2024 |
| Edible vegetables and certain roots and tubers | $1.46M | 2024 |
| Coffee, tea, mate and spices | $594.33K | 2024 |
| Edible fruits, nuts, peel of citrus fruit, melons | $426.68K | 2024 |
| Electrical, electronic equipment | $357.55K | 2024 |
| Wool, animal hair, horsehair yarn and fabric | $317.73K | 2024 |
| Rubbers | $209.85K | 2024 |
| Pharmaceutical products | $115.14K | 2024 |
| Soaps, lubricants, waxes, candles, modelling pastes | $105.88K | 2024 |
| Articles of iron or steel | $80.23K | 2024 |
| Plastics | $75.78K | 2024 |
| Mineral fuels, oils, distillation products | $20.12M | 2023 |
| Inorganic chemicals, precious metal compound, isotope | $13.49M | 2023 |
| Vehicles other than railway, tramway | $3.27M | 2023 |
| Fish, crustaceans, molluscs, aquatics invertebrates | $2.23M | 2023 |
| Albuminoids, modified starches, glues, enzymes | $1.04M | 2023 |
| Vegetable, fruit, nut food preparations | $640.52K | 2023 |
| Residues, wastes of food industry, animal fodder | $596.90K | 2023 |
| Beverages, spirits and vinegar | $334.19K | 2023 |
| Cereals | $240.10K | 2023 |
| Oil seed, oleagic fruits, grain, seed, fruits | $226.33K | 2023 |
| Essential oils, perfumes, cosmetics, toileteries | $129.14K | 2023 |
| Tools, implements, cutlery of base metal | $24.19K | 2023 |
| Printed books, newspapers, pictures | $1.09K | 2023 |
| Copper | $561 | 2023 |
| Salt, sulphur, earth, stone, plaster, lime and cement | $298.77K | 2021 |
| Iron and steel | $643.02K | 2019 |
| Paper and paperboard, articles of pulp, paper and board | $72.05K | 2019 |
In January 2025, Argentina's YPF signed a memorandum with ONGC Videsh, GAIL, and OIL to export liquefied natural gas and collaborate on hydrocarbon exploration. In July of that year, Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s on a visit to President Javier Milei in Buenos Aires widened ties in defense, space, agriculture, and pharmaceuticals, while both sides strengthened institutional engagement through the Joint Working Group on Agriculture and discussions on expanding the MERCOSUR trade agreement.[10][11][12]
Science and education
[edit]In January 2007, ISRO launched Pehuensat-1, an Argentine nano-satellite on board PSLV.[13] India and Argentina are both members of the Antarctic Treaty. An MoU for Antarctic co-operation was signed by the two countries in 1998 and renewed in 2006.[2]
India provides five ITEC scholarships to Argentine candidates annually. Argentine diplomats have attended the courses at the Foreign Service Training Institute of India. The University of Buenos Aires conducts postgraduate courses in Ayurveda in collaboration with the Gujarat Ayurveda University. The Jawaharlal Nehru University signed an MoU for cooperation with San Luis University of Argentina.[2]
Cultural relations
[edit]Sports
[edit]The Indian Football Academy collaborated with Argentine football club River Plate for training and exchanges. Argentine football legend Diego Maradona visited India in October 2009. Several Argentine players play in the Indian Super League.[2]
There is a huge fan following for Argentina's national football team in Indian states of Kerala and West Bengal.[14][15]
The Don Torcuato based sports club Hindú Club traces its origin to Indian laborers, mainly from Bihar and Bengal, who were brought to South America for rubber plantation. Those immigrant workers were fundamental in founding the club in 1895.
Areas of Untapped Potential
[edit]Argentina and India both boast vibrant domestic film industries that produce high-quality movies. However, most Argentine films only reach Indian audiences through film festivals. India's diverse movie sectors, including Bollywood, Tamil, Malayalam, and Bengali cinema, hold great potential for capturing a significant market and viewership in Argentina. Leveraging cinema as a soft power tool is an opportunity that both nations have yet to fully explore.
Similarly, there needs to be mutual promotion of tourism between the two countries. Both nations offer complementary attractions and experiences from a tourism perspective. Currently, the lack of direct flight connectivity between Latin America and South Asia poses a major roadblock to enhancing people-to-people interactions, travel, and tourism.
Indian diaspora
[edit]
As of 2013, about 200 Indian citizens (predominantly from the Sindhi community) reside in Buenos Aires, of which, half have lived there for over 30 years. Other Indian residents are employees of Indian and multinational corporations in Argentina. About 300 Punjabi Sikhs settled down in Salta province in the early and mid twentieth century. As of 2013, their current population numbers around 2000. They have become Argentine citizens and are mostly employed in retail and wholesale trade. There is a gurudwara in Rosario de la Frontera.[2]
References
[edit]- ^ Dyson, Ketaki Kushari (15 July 2001). "On the Trail of Rabindranath Tagore and Victoria Ocampo". Parabaas.com. Retrieved 2017-02-25.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k "India-Argentina Relations" (PDF). mea.gov.in. Archived from the original (PDF) on 8 July 2014. Retrieved 13 January 2022.
- ^ "Former Prime Minister Smt. Indira Gandhi's Historic Visit to Venezuela" (PDF). Embindia.org. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2016-03-04. Retrieved 2017-02-25.
- ^ "Report 1968-69, Ministry of External Affairs, Government of India". mealib.nic.in. Archived from the original on 3 May 2015. Retrieved 13 January 2022.
- ^ Press Trust of India (2025-07-05). "PM Modi arrives in Argentina on two-day visit". The Hindu. ISSN 0971-751X. Retrieved 2025-07-15.
- ^ "India- Mercosur Trade". Indembarg.org.ar Embassy of India, Buenos Aires, Argentina : India- Mercosur Trade. 2010-06-15. Archived from the original on 2017-02-26. Retrieved 2017-02-25.
- ^ Briefing, India (2024-11-05). "India-Argentina Bilateral Trade and Investment". India Briefing News. Retrieved 2025-09-01.
- ^ "Argentina | Imports and Exports | World | ALL COMMODITIES | Value (US$) and Value Growth, YoY (%) | 2012 - 2023". trendeconomy.com. 2024-01-28. Retrieved 2025-09-01.
- ^ "Argentina Customs Export Data & Statistics | Argentina Exports". www.tradeimex.in. Retrieved 2025-09-01.
- ^ "Argentina's YPF signs deal with Indian firms to export LNG". Reuters. 2025-01-21. Retrieved 2025-09-01.
- ^ Sigal, Lucila (2025-01-29). "India seeking energy, lithium investments in Argentina". Reuters. Retrieved 2025-09-01.
- ^ Sen, Abhishek (2025-07-07). "Modi, Milei agree to deepen India-Argentina strategic ties". IndBiz | Economic Diplomacy Division. Retrieved 2025-09-01.
- ^ "ISRO to launch 4 payloads from one rocket". Rediff.com. PTI. 2007-01-05. Retrieved 2017-02-25.
- ^ "How Brazil, Argentina became favourites in Kerala's timeless love story with football". The News Minute. 2018-06-11. Retrieved 2018-09-27.
- ^ "Kerala football fan, who went missing after Argentina's defeat, found dead". Deccan Chronicle. Retrieved 2018-09-27.
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