India for 'fair, balanced & pragmatic' FTA deal with EU: VK Singh

CASCAIS (PORTUGAL): With India and the EU set to resume negotiations soon on a long stalled free trade agreement, Union Minister V K Singh has voiced India's stand that it looks for an early conclusion of a "fair, balanced and pragmatic" deal.

Negotiations on the free trade agreement between India and the 28-nation European Union (EU) have been held up since May 2013 as both the sides are yet to bridge substantial gaps on crucial issues, including data security status for the IT sector.

Speaking on 'What next for EU-India Relations?' at the Horasis India Meeting in Cascais yesterday, Singh said, "I am happy that the Chief Negotiators are meeting soon in Delhi and we look forward to seriously resuming the negotiations." He did not provide a date for the talks.

In this context, India also looks forward to the early conclusion of a "fair, balanced and pragmatic India-EU Broad- based Bilateral Trade and Investment Agreement (BTIA)," Singh said.

"There are a few outstanding issues in the BTIA where we have not yet been able to find common ground," he said.

At the same time, Singh underlined that some of the recent reform initiatives taken by the Indian Government on its own have already addressed many pending EU demands.

"We believe that outstanding issues can be resolved and progress can be made in the negotiations if flexibility is shown by both sides in a spirit of accommodation, taking into account the differentials in our economies," Singh said.

"We have clearly reaffirmed our interest in resuming the negotiations and hope to see similar interest from the EU side," the minister said.

Launched in June 2007, the negotiations for the proposed BTIA have witnessed many hurdles with both sides having major differences on crucial issues like intellectual property rights, duty cut in automobile and spirits, and liberal visa regime.

The pact is aimed at reducing or significantly eliminating tariffs on goods, facilitate trade in services and boost investments between the two sides.

The EU is India's largest trade partner and export destination with bilateral trade touching USD 126 billion.

The EU is also the largest investor in India contributing about 26 per cent of India's total FDI inflow. It is a leading source of cutting edge technology and development partnerships.