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Reuben Gauci, High Commissioner of Malta to India, lauded the India-European Union (EU) Free Trade Agreement (FTA), calling it the "mother of all deals" and highlighting its potential to expand trade and investment between India and the EU.
Speaking to ANI on Tuesday, Gauci said, "The mother of deals has now been born, and we are expecting that this will grow and make trade and investment between India and the EU a much bigger reality... Now we should be thinking of a lot of connectivity. My country, Malta, is in the middle of the Mediterranean... We are looking at how this connectivity will affect our sea routes and how we can contribute to it." The High Commissioner emphasised the need for stability and predictability in trade. "We should stand for predictability... Even if tariffs are imposed, it is done in an amicable way rather than like a punishment... It is important that we do not weaponise anything... We have the FTA for matters to take place in a predictable way," he added. The India-EU FTA coincides with strengthened cooperation in the technology and innovation domains. As per the India-EU Joint Statement on the State Visit of the EU delegation, both sides aim to leverage their complementary strengths to enhance collaboration across the entire value chain, linking research, innovation, and business engagement to practical market operationalisation. In the current geopolitical environment and amidst global disruptions, they reaffirmed the India-EU Trade and Technology Council (TTC), a high-level coordination platform to address key trade, technology and economic security issues, as the cornerstone of their technology partnership and aim to further enhance its work. The two sides will continue to advance together on promoting Digital Public Infrastructure, including interoperable standards and exchange of best practices on regulatory frameworks, collaboration in new technologies (including semiconductors, artificial intelligence, quantum computing, digital public infrastructure and 6G) to build cyber-secure, trusted digital ecosystems, as well as to advance cooperation in clean tech. They will broaden discussions on economic security, in particular on the resilience of supply chains and research security, underlining the importance of protecting sensitive technologies. Both sides agreed to hold the next TTC ministerial meeting in Brussels in 2026 and to deepen business consultations. (ANI)
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