Pending issues for India-UK FTA likely to be resolved soon

The Union Cabinet Minister Piyush Goyal has recently informed that India and the United Kingdom (UK) would be able to resolve the pending issues for a free-trade agreement (FTA) in the coming weeks, as the remaining issues were not insurmountable.

He said both sides were looking at issues which were of a very sensitive nature as well as very important for each other. “We hope that in the coming weeks we will be able to come to some conclusion,” he said.

The Minister said that both sides had several rounds of negotiations, and 20 of the 26 chapters had been sealed. Till now, 13 rounds of negotiations have been concluded on the issue, and chief negotiators of India and the UK are expected to soon hold the next round of talks to iron out the remaining issues, including concessions for electric vehicles (EVs) and greater market access in services, among others.

Launched in January last year, the agreement was originally scheduled to conclude by last Diwali (24th October 2022), but the deadline was missed due to several adverse developments.