India, EU set to make ‘significant’ progress in 2025 FTA talks, diplomats say

Representative image | Photo credit: PTI

“Significant progress” in the free trade agreement (FTA) between India and the European Union is expected in 2025, senior European diplomats said in New Delhi, as the commerce and trade minister Union Industry Piyush Goyal began his three-day visit to Brussels on Saturday. An EU-India strategic roadmap is also taking shape, under which the EU-India summit will take place at the end of the year, the diplomats added.

Mr. Goyal will have a high-level dialogue with Maroš Šefčovič, European Commission Commissioner for Trade and Economic Security in Brussels.

“We hope to organize the EU-India summit this year. This hasn’t happened in a while. This is an important meeting which should bring the two regions, the EU and India, closer together. And Poland hopes to facilitate and support the EU delegation and the European Commission in their efforts to bridge the gap and bring the two partners closer,” said Sebastian Domzalski, Charge d’affaires of the Polish Embassy in India . “We also hope to see progress in the negotiations on the EU-India free trade agreement. This is a hot topic, which we have been discussing for a long time… So, not only the summit, but also significant progress in the FTA negotiations is likely, an effort that Poland is committed to supporting during his presidency.”

Poland, which has been part of the EU for 21 years, took over the presidency of the organization on January 1. At an event marking the occasion last week, Domzalski stressed that she had taken on this responsibility in a period of uncertainty, with Europe “facing the consequences of Russian aggression against Ukraine , growing geopolitical tensions and hybrid threats to democracy and security.”

Aware of this, the Polish presidency will give priority to strengthening European security, “in all dimensions”, notably external, internal, informational, economic, energy, food and health, he declared. “We understand the importance of working closely with our partners around the world, India being one of them. »

With new leadership established within the EU, a renewed mandate for Prime Minister Narendra Modi after last year’s elections in India and his historic visit to Poland, they are poised to engage even more deeply with the India, Mr. Domzalski said.

Speaking at the event, Hervé Delphin, Ambassador of the EU Delegation to India, said that in an environment fraught with challenges, what stands out is that the Union and India are natural partners and stabilizing powers in this threatening environment. “So indeed, it would be a very rich year. 2025 will probably be the EU-India year. This was considered a priority by the EU. A new strategic agenda with India is in preparation. This will culminate with the EU-India summit,” he observed. He further said that as the bloc moves forward on the common agenda, all member states are “leaning forward” when it comes to India.

FTA 2.0

Informed diplomatic sources have described the ongoing FTA negotiations as “FTA 2.0” and are completely different from previous negotiations which lasted several years before reaching a conclusion. “A lot is expected to happen in this space. Continue to monitor the space,” a source said, expressing confidence in major progress in FTA negotiations this year.

During Mr. Goyal’s visit, the two leaders are expected to hold in-depth discussions on the India-EU FTA negotiations, review the framework of the Trade and Technology Council and address bilateral trade issues, said the Ministry of Commerce in a press release. “Leaders are expected to discuss the global economic situation amid trade disruptions, provide policy guidance to accelerate FTA negotiations, and explore a commercially meaningful, balanced, equitable, ambitious and mutually beneficial FTA.”

The EU is one of India’s largest trading partners, with bilateral trade estimated at over $180 billion in 2023-2024, and continues to be an important source of foreign direct investment.