If Brazil is the anchor of India’s engagement with Latin America, then the wider region is the architecture that gives that engagement depth and direction. The visit of President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva to India earlier this year was an important moment in India–Brazil relations and also a signal of the graowing importance of India–Latin America ties. Brazil, as Latin America’s largest economy and India’s largest trading partner in the region, plays a central role in shaping the broader India–LAC relationship. Cooperation between India and Brazil spans energy, agriculture, mining, pharmaceuticals, technology and multilateral engagement through platforms such as BRICS and the G20.

But India’s engagement with Latin America is not defined by Brazil alone. Across the region, India has been steadily building relationships with a number of key countries, each of which plays a specific role in the broader partnership.

Mexico has emerged as one of India’s most important partners in manufacturing, automobiles, engineering goods and technology cooperation, and also serves as a gateway to the North American market. Argentina is a crucial partner in agriculture and food security, and is also part of the Lithium Triangle that will be important for India’s electric mobility and battery manufacturing sectors. Chile and Peru are among the world’s largest producers of copper, a metal that is critical for infrastructure, power, electronics and renewable energy systems, all sectors that are expanding rapidly in India.

Colombia and other energy-producing countries in the region are important for India’s energy diversification strategy, while countries such as Paraguay and Uruguay are important agricultural partners and also provide access to the MERCOSUR trading bloc. Panama, with the Panama Canal and its position as a logistics and financial hub, serves as a gateway for trade with the wider Latin American region.

Taken together, these countries form the strategic map of India’s engagement with Latin America — a relationship that is no longer defined by distance, but by opportunity, complementarity and long-term partnership.