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Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal will be visiting Brussels later this week. He will discuss India-EU trade, progress in the Free Trade Agreement (FTA) and other issues with new EU Trade Commissioner Valdis Dombrovskis, as per sources.
The Union Minister has been taking active steps towards making the India-EU trade agreements successful, as Goyal in December last year interacted with Ambassadors of the European Commission delegation, Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Czech Republic, Estonia, Italy, Ireland, Latvia, Lithuania, Malta, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovak Republic, Spain and Sweden. The FTA negotiations, after 9 rounds of intense engagement, need political directions to arrive at a commercially meaningful deal while understanding the sensitivities of each other, the ministry has stated. The Minister further underlined that any sustainability discussions must appreciate the principle of Common But Differentiated Responsibility (CBDR) and implementation of such measures should take into account differing paths of development. Goyal has stressed that the FTA would be instrumental in further diversifying and expanding India's exports while strengthening critical value chains. In October last year, he expressed his optimism about the potential of trade between both sides. Speaking at at the launch of the Federation of European Business in India (FEBI) in New Delhi last year, Goyal said that two-way trade between Europe and India can grow exponentially if both sides understand each other's concerns and cooperate meaningfully. The agreement is aimed at further boosting bilateral trade and investments between the two regions. The two sides are negotiating a free trade agreement, an investment protection agreement and an agreement on geographical indications (GIs). The FTA negotiations between India and the EU, which have been ongoing since 2007, have seen periods of stagnation and revival. Talks resumed with renewed vigour in 2021 after a nearly eight-year hiatus, focusing on reducing tariffs, addressing market access challenges, and facilitating investment flows between the two regions. India's bilateral trade in goods with the EU reached USD 137.41 billion in 2023-24, making the EU India's largest trading partner for goods. Furthermore, bilateral trade in services between the two partners stood at an impressive USD 51.45 billion in 2023. (ANI)
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