The India-EU FTA, the most ambitious free-trade pact that the country is negotiating, is unlikely to be signed in the remaining tenure of the UPA government.
Negotiators from both sides met in Delhi for the past three days to resolve the remaining differences but to no avail, reports CNBC-TV18 Rituparna Bhuyan, quoting sources. Also Read: Parliament logjam casts shadow over India-EU FTA
This was the 16th round of talks and it was expected that this will be the penultimate round before a conclusion is announced. However, nothing has been concluded and there was no progress in the past three days, according to sources.
Talks will continue in the coming months but trade diplomats involved in the talks indicate that the possibility of concluding talks successfully is a distinct possibility as far as the remaining tenure of the UPA-2 government is concerned. The Parliament is yet to pass the Insurance Bill which will lead to 49 percent foreign direct investment (FDI) in insurance which is a must-have for the European Union (EU) FTA.
The EU is not committing to any of India’s demands regarding secure-data status. Meanwhile, the European Union is also going to start talks with United States on a mega free-trade agreement. It has also started talks with Japan on a free-trade deal. So, a lot of uncertainty has now crept in as far as this free trade agreement (FTA) is concerned.
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