New Delhi: Piyush Goyal, the Union Minister of Commerce and Industry, Textiles, Consumer Affairs, Food Industry and Public Transport, the European Commission’s Executive Vice-President responsible for an economy that works for people, and the European Commission’s Commissioner for Trade, Valdis Dombrovskis, emphasized the need for acceleration. the ongoing India-EU FTA negotiations by finding convergence on all issues.
This was discussed at a bilateral meeting of leaders on the occasion of the first ministerial meeting of the India-EU Trade and Technology Council (TTC). The meeting was attended by senior officials from both sides.
During the bilateral discussions, the leaders recalled the long-standing partnership between the two sides and emphasized the need to work together to deepen the association due to their commitment to democracy and rules-based international systems. They stressed the need to accelerate the ongoing free trade negotiations by finding convergence on all issues, including market access, after due consideration of mutual sensitivities, for balanced and substantive outcomes that support the economy and employment on both sides.
Both sides reaffirmed their commitment to work together on common priorities for WTO reforms, including issues related to the dispute settlement mechanism, agricultural and fisheries subsidies, the e-commerce moratorium, and domestic legislation. Both sides recognized the need to build on their shared goals to find consensus-based solutions that would support the livelihoods and food security of millions in India and much of the developing world. They expressed their hope that their joint efforts will make it possible to find meaningful solutions at the next ministerial conference of the WTO.
This meeting was followed by the Working Group 3 stakeholder meeting co-chaired by Piyush Goyal and Valdis Dombrovskis. The meeting was attended by stakeholders representing India and the EU. Working Group 3 focuses on trade, investment and flexible supply chains. On the EU side, there were representatives from major European industry bodies, including Business Europe, Digital Europe, Food Drinks Europe, Copa-Cogeca, EFPIA and ACEA. The delegation of Indian business leaders who attended the meeting in person represented sectors such as chemicals, metals, textiles, digital infrastructure and steel, while representatives from other sectors such as agri-food and maritime/logistics were present in virtual mode. .
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