IBNS-CMEDIA: EU Commissioner for Trade Maros Sefcovic on Sunday said India and the European Union are moving closer to concluding negotiations on a free trade agreement (FTA).
After arriving in India, Sefcovic—who also holds the portfolios of Economic Security and Inter-Institutional Relations and Transparency—met Union Minister of Commerce and Industry Piyush Goyal ahead of the EU-India Summit.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi will host the summit on January 27 in New Delhi.
Sharing a photograph of his meeting with Goyal, Sefcovic wrote on X, “A big pleasure to be in India. Our 10th in-person engagement with Minister @PiyushGoyal — and I’m confident to say we’re nearing the conclusion of our FTA negotiations.”
He added that the progress was the culmination of an intense year of engagement. “The cumulation of an intense past year — likely my most frequent trade engagement — reflecting its importance,” he said.
Responding to the post, Goyal said, “Truly delighted to welcome you my friend, @MarosSefcovic! Pleased to agree that sustained and constructive engagement between us and our teams over the past year has brought us closer to a fruitful outcome. The European Union remains a vital economic and strategic partner for India, and we value our shared commitment to a mutually beneficial, ambitious India-EU FTA for the prosperity of our businesses and people.”
Meanwhile, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on Sunday met senior European Union leaders in New Delhi, a day ahead of India’s 77th Republic Day celebrations.
During the high-level engagements, Jaishankar held talks with the President of the European Council, António Costa, and the President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, who are visiting India as chief guests for the Republic Day.
Costa and von der Leyen will represent the European Union at the 16th EU-India Summit in New Delhi, to be hosted by Prime Minister Modi.
According to an EU statement, the summit will offer an opportunity to build on the India-EU Strategic Partnership and further strengthen cooperation in key areas including trade, security and defence, clean transition, and people-to-people ties.
