Considerable progress in India-UK FTA talks; discussions on various difficult issues between ministers

financialexpress.com:

With the India-UK talks for a free trade agreement has reached a “critical stage”, the visit of Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal to London this week has helped in moving the negotiations forward as both the countries held discussions on various “difficult” issues, an official statement said on Wednesday.

“Encouragingly, considerable progress was achieved during their frank and open discussions on various difficult issues,” the commerce ministry said in a statement.The minister is on a three-day visit to London from July 10.”The visit was strategically timed, coinciding with the critical stage of ongoing negotiations, and proved to be instrumental in moving the discussions forward,” it said.Goyal met with the Secretary of State for Trade of the United Kingdom, Kemi Badenoch, to discuss the free trade agreement (FTA) and explore opportunities for enhanced collaboration between the two nations.

It said that both sides focused on low-hanging fruits, which included the closure of several chapters in the negotiations.”This pragmatic approach aimed at resolving issues where negotiators had encountered challenges. The visit proved to be critical in overcoming crucial obstacles and charting a path forward towards an ambitious and mutually beneficial trade deal,” it said.Recognizing India’s vast population of 1.4 billion and its remarkable economic growth, both ministers acknowledged the immense potential of the Indian market for Britain.

Negotiations for a trade agreement between India and the UK were launched on January 13, 2021.The negotiations between the two countries for the agreement cover as many as 26 policy areas/chapters. Investment is being negotiated as a separate agreement (bilateral investment treaty)