General

From June 27 to July 1, local time, India and the European Union officially restarted free trade negotiations, which had been stalled for nine years. In addition to free trade agreements, the main content of this negotiation also involves two major agreements on investment protection and geographical indications.

Negotiations resume

The Ministry of Industry and Commerce of India recently issued a statement revealing that the first round of talks on the 5-day Indo-EU FTA negotiation ended in New Delhi on July 1. The two sides held a total of 52 technical meetings on the 18 policy areas of the FTA. It contains 7 thematic sessions on investment protection and geographical indications. A second round of talks is planned for September in Brussels, Belgium.

India and the EU have been negotiating a free trade agreement since 2007, but the talks were shelved in 2013 due to differences over issues such as tariffs on cars and wine. On June 17 this year, Indian Minister of Commerce and Industry Piyush Goyal and European Commission Executive Vice-President and Trade Commissioner Valdice Dombrovskis officially announced at an event at EU headquarters that the restart of India will be - EU Free Trade Agreement negotiations.

Compared with the previous negotiations, this year, India and Europe have added two new agreements on investment protection and geographical indications in the negotiations. "The two new agreements, as a supplement to the free trade agreement, fully reflect the consensus between India and the EU on further strengthening economic ties and promoting economic and trade cooperation." Sun Yanhong, a researcher at the Institute of European Studies, Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, said in an interview with this newspaper. .

strong will

The restart of the FTA negotiations between India and the EU this time is not the first attempt in the past nine years. "In the past two years, affected by the UK's 'Brexit' and other factors, the EU has repeatedly proposed to restart the negotiation of the free trade agreement with India." Sun Yanhong analyzed that the just-concluded first round of talks between India and the EU marked the two sides' efforts to restart the free trade agreement. The key "start button" was pressed in the negotiation. India and the EU understood each other's core demands and determined the specific areas and directions of the negotiation, reflecting the political determination of both sides to promote the negotiation process.

According to the data, the EU is currently India's second largest trading partner after the US. Between 2021 and 2022, bilateral merchandise trade volume will hit a new high of $116.36 billion. Relevant analysis believes that strengthening economic and trade cooperation with the EU can not only further expand India's foreign economic and trade cooperation, but also help it achieve the goal of diversifying its supply chain. India is one of the EU's top ten trading partners. The EU actively seeks to resume free trade negotiations with India, which also has its geopolitical considerations. "Since this year, the occurrence of major geopolitical events such as the Russia-Ukraine conflict has made the EU's willingness to restart negotiations with India unprecedentedly strong." Sun Yanhong analyzed that the EU hopes to weaken India and Russia's energy, armament, etc. by actively throwing an olive branch. aspect of contact.

resistance remains

"India and Europe's strong willingness to negotiate may lead both sides to make more concessions in this negotiation on tariff cuts, talent visa thresholds, and barriers to foreign investment protection." However, Sun Yanhong also pointed out that the obstacles that led to the shelving of negotiations in 2013 Still unresolved, India's consistently tough style in international economic and trade cooperation negotiations also casts a shadow over the prospects of this negotiation.

According to expert analysis, the fundamental reason why the negotiations on the India-EU Free Trade Agreement stagnated nine years ago is that the two sides are at different stages of development and have different core demands. India hopes that the EU will lower the threshold for Indian professionals to apply for visas, so as to promote the flow of labor and the development of the software service outsourcing industry. The EU wants to make it easier for cars, agricultural products and financial investments to enter the Indian market.

According to a notice published on the website of the Russian Presidential Press Service, on the day when the first round of talks between India and the European Union ended, Russian President Vladimir Putin and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi exchanged phone calls. mutually beneficial relationship between the two sides in the economic field.

"This call has sent an important signal that India's dependence on Russia in the energy and economic fields may exceed the EU's estimates." Sun Yanhong believes that India's move adds more to the geopolitical goals the EU hopes to achieve Much uncertainty.

Sun Yanhong said that compared with the past, this negotiation is also faced with a new problem, that is, the EU has actively promoted strategic autonomy in recent years. When signing free trade agreements with economic and trade partners, it is more emphasized than ever that the content of the agreement must reflect and conform to the EU's democratic values. and its high standards in human rights and environmental protection. "If both India and Europe are unwilling to compromise on this during the negotiation, the prospects for the negotiation will be uncertain."