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Following an ambitious effort to boost the diplomatic role of the parliament, India's Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla made an announcement on February 23, 2026, that Parliamentary Friendship Groups (PFGs) will now be established with 64 countries. The historic move is expected to increase deeper cross-parliamentary collaboration, create long-term legislative dialogue, and enhance traditional diplomatic efforts with the organization of the interactive work between the MPs.

The teams of 11 members each, consisting of members of Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha, cover major countries in the world such as the US, UK, Russia, France, Germany, Japan, Italy, Iran, South Africa, Australia, Bhutan, Nepal, UAE, Saudi Arabia, Israel, and Brazil, among others. They represent the extensive universal coverage by India of the major world powers, neighbors, and new partners in the continents.

The traits that give it a unique character are the cross-party mix, where leading figures of the ruling and opposition benches are chosen as chairpersons. The notable participants include Shashi Tharoor (France), P. Chidambaram (Italy), Akhilesh Yadav (Japan), Asaduddin Owaisi (Oman), Supriya Sule (Singapore), Derek O'Brien (Chile), and BJP primary ex-officio leaders like Ravi Shankar Prasad, Nishikant Dubey, Anurag Thakur, and Baijayant Panda as heads of different delegations.

The relocation encourages bipartisanship involvement in international matters, cultural interaction, legislative reciprocity, and learning. According to the officials, further groups are scheduled, with these being co-terminus to the present Lok Sabha term. It is perceived as a systematic effort to give India a greater voice in the world legislatures as the geopolitics of the world become increasingly dynamic.

The announcement is seen as a positive move towards unifying domestic conflicts in the national interest of the country, despite the political strife going on in Parliament. These groups are said to be opening new channels of people-to-people and institutional relationships as they become active, which strengthened the position of India as a vibrant democracy in the global system.