German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, who is on a three-day visit to New Delhi, advocated a quick conclusion of negotiations on a free trade agreement between the European Union and India. This is reported by TASS. At a joint press conference with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi in New Delhi, Scholz called for "rapid progress and a quick conclusion" of the talks.
"If we work together on this, Prime Minister, it can happen in months, not years," the German chancellor told the Indian prime minister. Scholz and several German ministers are in India, where they will participate in the seventh German-Indian government consultations. The EU and India started negotiations on a comprehensive free trade agreement in 2007, but they were suspended in 2013 due to differences in intellectual property rights, information security in IT companies and due to disagreements between the parties over the availability of certain goods, such as cars, in the common market.
Negotiations resumed in 2022. The EU wants India to remove trade barriers for small companies and open markets for services and public procurement. But, says TASS, India protects the interests of its micro, small and medium enterprises and also protects sensitive sectors such as agriculture and dairy, keeping in mind the plight of Indian farmers.
