Trade and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal on Friday held high-level talks with European Commissioner for Trade and Economic Security Maros Sefcovic in Brussels as part of efforts to secure a mutually beneficial Free Trade Agreement (FTA) between India and the EU.
“During this dialogue, we deliberated on the key areas of the proposed agreement. We reaffirmed our commitment to a rules-based trade framework and a modern economic partnership that protects the interests of farmers and MSMEs while integrating Indian industries into global supply chains,” Goyal said in an article on X.
India is pushing for duty-free access for its labor-intensive sectors, such as textiles, leather, clothing, gems and jewelry, and handicrafts.
The Indian minister’s visit to Brussels highlights the intensification of diplomatic and technical engagements between India and the EU.
The main objective of these interactions is to provide strategic guidance to the negotiating teams, resolve outstanding issues and accelerate the conclusion of a balanced and ambitious agreement.
The ministerial commitment follows a week of intensive deliberations in Brussels, building on the groundwork laid during high-level discussions held earlier this week between Indian Commerce Secretary Rajesh Agrawal and the European Commission’s Director-General for Trade, Sabine Weyand.
The talks come at a historic moment for economic relations between India and the EU. Negotiations were ambitiously relaunched in June 2022 after a hiatus of more than nine years, reflecting a renewed mutual commitment to deepening economic integration. Since the resumption, the two sides have held 14 rounds of intense negotiations and several high-level ministerial-level dialogues, with the last interaction dating back to December 2025, according to an official statement.
India and the EU have expressed their strong political will to reach a comprehensive agreement. The upcoming negotiations are expected to reaffirm both sides’ commitment to a rules-based trade framework and a modern economic partnership that protects the interests of farmers and MSMEs while integrating Indian industries into global supply chains, he said.
The European Union is currently India’s largest trading partner and a key investor, with bilateral trade in goods significantly strengthened in the 2024-25 financial year. This agreement is envisaged not only as a trade agreement, but also as a global partnership that responds to modern economic realities, the press release added.
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