Held three meetings in 35 days with EU trade commissioner to push FTA talks: Union Minister Piyush Goyal
BRESCIA (ITALY): Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal has held three meetings within a short span of 35 days with the European Commissioner for Trade Maros Sefcovic with an aim to give an impetus to the reposed negotiations for a free trade agreement.
Goyal said on Thursday that India has already signed similar agreements with four-European nation bloc EFTA and the UK.
The European Free Trade Association (EFTA) members are Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway, and Switzerland.
Now, India is in the process of concluding the negotiations with the 27-nation bloc European Union.
"We have held three meetings in 35 days. It shows our shared commitment for the FTA. We are trying to do it faster," Goyal told reporters here.
The minister is here on a two-day visit.
He is meeting leaders and businesses to boost trade and investments between the two countries.
The first and the second meetings between Goyal and Sefcovic were held on May 1 and May 23 in Brussels, while the third meeting concluded on June 2 in Paris.
India and the European Union (EU) are likely to agree upon a comprehensive free trade agreement (FTA).
In June 2022, India and the 27-nation EU bloc resumed negotiations for a comprehensive FTA, an investment protection agreement and a pact on GIs after a gap of over eight years.
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