Bangladesh, Feb. 3 -- When European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen declared in New Delhi, “We did it, we delivered the mother of all deals,” her exuberance was more than diplomatic theater. It reflected a deeper geopolitical shift now underway. The finalization of the long-delayed India–European Union Free Trade Agreement (FTA), after nearly two decades of halting negotiations, is not merely an economic milestone. It is a strategic response by two major actors navigating a rapidly fragmenting global order shaped by American unpredictability.

That the agreement was sealed during Indias Republic Day celebrations-with von der Leyen and European Council President Antonio Costa as chief guests-was symbolically pot...