Indian External Affairs Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar stated that New Delhi is ready to sign a “fair and balanced” free trade agreement (FTA) with the European Union.
The minister on Wednesday clarified that the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP), signed by 15 countries including China, was “not in our interest”.
“It is like I went to a shop and didn’t buy a particular product, doesn’t mean I don’t like the market in general. I went to that shop and I didn’t like that product. If you get me a better product in Europe, I will be very happy to look at it,” he detailed.
Participating in a virtual exchange with the Centre for European Policy Studies, Jaishankar said that if New Delhi had entered into the RCEP, “it would have fairly immediate negative consequences for our own economy”.
Jaishankar said India’s key concerns were not addressed in the RCEP and, as a result, New Delhi was moved to observe that “given the way it is currently, it is not in our interest”.
Negotiations for a comprehensive FTA between the EU and India were launched in 2007 but suspended in 2013 due to differences.
“The EU remains committed to working towards an ambitious, comprehensive and balanced agreement FTA with India that responds to each side’s key interests and is a win-win,” said the European Commission at the time, according to reports.
During the recent 15 July European Union-India Summit, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi said that an inter-ministerial mechanism had been set up which would look into an India-EU trade agreement and trade relations.
According to the European Commission website, the bloc’s concerns include India’s restrictive “trade regime and regulatory environment”.
The European Commission also asserted that technical barriers to trade, deviation from international standards and agreements, and discrimination-based on legislative or administrative measures by India affect a wide range of sectors, including goods, services, investment, and public procurement.
