India to Prioritize National Interests in US-Led Indo-Pacific Economic Framework

India will prioritize its national interests while negotiating certain aspects of the US-led Indo-Pacific Economic Framework among members, the country's Trade Minister Piyush Goyal said on Friday.

"We can begin engaging among member countries on different areas of mutual interest," Goyal told reporters on the sidelines of the first in-person ministerial meeting of the IPEF. "India will take its decisions on different aspects of the IPEF framework based on our national interest," he added.

This comes amid a US-India spat over several issues, including data privacy and data localization, which are labeled as financial burdens on Silicon Valley giants. Under the data localization law, India prohibits foreign firms from transferring sensitive data of its citizens outside the country.

Downplaying the differences, the Indian minister stated that he had informed his US counterparts that India is looking to have very contemporary and modern laws in the digital space, while maintaining high levels of data privacy, particularly of its citizens' personal data.

"India is a big provider of technology services and we have a shared interest to have a very good understanding on the laws because we have a great interest in services export also," he said.

Goyal noted that India is a significant provider of technology services to US companies, and that a robust data framework is being proposed to be presented to parliament soon.

India Lists Priorities Ahead of First Ministerial Meeting of US-led Indo-Pacific Economic Forum

8 September 2022, 11:17 GMT

Since May, IPEF countries have held several online and hybrid meetings, described as a "scoping exercise" by the US, to frame rules for the multilateral group. The countries have yet to determine their areas of interest in four IPEF pillars -- trade rules, clean energy, supply chains, and tax and anti-corruption.

Even though India is negotiating trade deals with the UK, the Gulf Cooperation Council, Canada, Israel, and the European Union, it has not resumed work on the Indo-US free trade agreement, which remains in suspended animation. Some experts believe Delhi could even walk out of the IPEF after participating only as an observer in July's meeting, chaired by US Trade Representative Catherine Tai.

India is set to renegotiate or even withdraw from some deals that exacerbate its trade deficit and harm its small and medium-sized industries.

Under the IPEF, the US aims at framing rules to boost its exports in the Asia-Pacific region. However, India has been seeking co-production to increase the country's manufacturing capacity.