Will push for India-EU FTA although it is unlikely to occur in 2023: Swedish Minister

Express News Service

NEW DELHI: India and EU have lately concluded the third spherical of negotiations for the continued Free Trade Agreement (FTA). Sweden is taking up the EU Presidency in a couple of weeks’ time and dealing on the FTA will probably be amongst their topmost priorities.

“India is significant for us and that’s the reason it is the first country that I have travelled to outside of Europe. We are soon going to be taking over the EU Presidency and among the things foremost on our mind is to get the FTA moving faster. We will broker the deal which should be based on trust. And as of now, I don’t see the FTA coming through in our Presidency as there are 27 EU members nations that have to work out an agreement with India,” stated Johan Forssell, Sweden’s Minister for International Development Cooperation and Foreign Trade. He added that they hoped for a complete FTA for which negotiations might take longer.

Forssell was in India with a 15-member commerce delegation which comprised CEOs of main Swedish corporations that included SAAB, Astra Zeneca, and Volvo amongst others.

Though Forssell did not spell out the potential roadblocks within the negotiations, he did say that easing of tariffs would assist commerce. The minister additionally met with Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal and stated he hoped that there can be ease of doing enterprise which might allow extra Swedish corporations to spend money on India. 

There are over 250 Swedish corporations in India, together with Erricsson, Volvo, SKF, Sandvik, Ikea and Volvo to call a couple of.

“The bilateral trade between India and Sweden has been on the upswing. In 2021 the commodity exports from Sweden to India was Kroner 11.5 billion and services was Kroner 5.8 billion. Exports from India to Sweden were Kroner 8.5 billion and services Kroner 16.5 billion,” stated an official from Sweden.

Meanwhile, India and Sweden will probably be celebrating 75 years of diplomatic ties with one another in 2023. Sweden can also be within the means of aiding India in inexperienced transistion and infrastructure in medical know-how. The sectors of collaboration had been defence, healthcare and safety, Forssell pointed.

Regarding India’s steady and rising import of fossil gasoline from Russia, Forssell stated that each nation should take its personal determination.

“We are hoping that the war ends soon and have just sent a winter package to Ukraine. A lot of work will have to be done there in terms of reconstruction. We are completely in sync with what Prime Minister, Narendra Modi has said, ‘that this is no time for war’,” Forssell added.
 

NEW DELHI: India and EU have lately concluded the third spherical of negotiations for the continued Free Trade Agreement (FTA). Sweden is taking up the EU Presidency in a couple of weeks’ time and dealing on the FTA will probably be amongst their topmost priorities.

“India is significant for us and that’s the reason it is the first country that I have travelled to outside of Europe. We are soon going to be taking over the EU Presidency and among the things foremost on our mind is to get the FTA moving faster. We will broker the deal which should be based on trust. And as of now, I don’t see the FTA coming through in our Presidency as there are 27 EU members nations that have to work out an agreement with India,” stated Johan Forssell, Sweden’s Minister for International Development Cooperation and Foreign Trade. He added that they hoped for a complete FTA for which negotiations might take longer.

Forssell was in India with a 15-member commerce delegation which comprised CEOs of main Swedish corporations that included SAAB, Astra Zeneca, and Volvo amongst others.

Though Forssell did not spell out the potential roadblocks within the negotiations, he did say that easing of tariffs would assist commerce. The minister additionally met with Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal and stated he hoped that there can be ease of doing enterprise which might allow extra Swedish corporations to spend money on India. 

There are over 250 Swedish corporations in India, together with Erricsson, Volvo, SKF, Sandvik, Ikea and Volvo to call a couple of.

“The bilateral trade between India and Sweden has been on the upswing. In 2021 the commodity exports from Sweden to India was Kroner 11.5 billion and services was Kroner 5.8 billion. Exports from India to Sweden were Kroner 8.5 billion and services Kroner 16.5 billion,” stated an official from Sweden.

Meanwhile, India and Sweden will probably be celebrating 75 years of diplomatic ties with one another in 2023. Sweden can also be within the means of aiding India in inexperienced transistion and infrastructure in medical know-how. The sectors of collaboration had been defence, healthcare and safety, Forssell pointed.

Regarding India’s steady and rising import of fossil gasoline from Russia, Forssell stated that each nation should take its personal determination.

“We are hoping that the war ends soon and have just sent a winter package to Ukraine. A lot of work will have to be done there in terms of reconstruction. We are completely in sync with what Prime Minister, Narendra Modi has said, ‘that this is no time for war’,” Forssell added.