India and New Zealand formally elevated their relationship to a Strategic Partnership on Saturday, adopting a “Roadmap to 2030” that encompasses 18 agreements spanning defence logistics, maritime security, counter-terrorism, and a target to double bilateral trade to NZ$7 billion by 2030. The pacts were signed during Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s two-day visit to Auckland, the first by an Indian premier in four decades, and follow the conclusion of a Free Trade Agreement in April after nine months of negotiations.

Indian officials described the partnership as a natural alignment of two maritime democracies committed to a free and open Indo-Pacific. New Zealand Prime Minister Christopher Luxon, who faces a general election in November, has promoted the FTA as an economic boon, though the deal has drawn criticism from the populist New Zealand First party, a coalition partner, over provisions easing immigration and visa access for Indian workers and students. A government minister’s reference to a “butter chicken tsunami” and a preacher’s call to “purge New Zealand of Hindus” underscored domestic friction, which Indian community leaders condemned as racism.

The agreements establish an annual Maritime Security Dialogue, reciprocal logistics support between the Indian Navy and New Zealand Defence Force, and a Joint Working Group on Counter-Terrorism. They also include cooperation in disaster management, sports, and Antarctic research. The trade target and New Zealand’s pledge to invest USD 20 billion in India over 15 years signal a deepening economic embrace that, according to analysts in Wellington, is partly driven by a desire to diversify supply chains and reduce dependence on China.

The visit, the final leg of a three-nation tour that included Indonesia and Australia, came days after China test-fired a ballistic missile into the Pacific, heightening regional security concerns. While Luxon told reporters the two sides “quickly canvassed” the missile test, he avoided framing the partnership as a counter to Beijing, instead emphasising a “multi-lattice” of arrangements. The FTA still requires parliamentary approval in New Zealand, and the roadmap’s implementation will be tested by the electoral calendar and the ability to translate pledges into operational cooperation.