During its EU presidency, Sweden will push for an early completion of the free trade agreement between India and the EU: Swedish Minister: The Tribune India
PTI
New Delhi, December 9
Weeks before Sweden takes over the presidency of the European Union, Swedish Foreign Trade Minister Johan Forssell said on Friday that pushing for an early completion of the India-EU free trade agreement will be one of the main priorities of his country’s year-long mandate at the 27th nation.
He said Sweden will act as an “honest broker” and do its best to finish the negotiations on the free trade agreement because it will be in “everyone’s interest”.
Describing India’s procurement of crude oil from Russia amid the Ukraine conflict as part of domestic politics, the minister said each country has to make its own decisions.
“I have not come here to tell you what to do. The war has affected Europe in many ways, especially in the energy situation. Each country must make its own decisions and I fully agree with the Prime Minister [Narendra] Modi said this is not the time for war,” he said while interacting with a group of journalists.
“We really hope that the war will end and hopefully very soon because there are no winners here. The situation in Ukraine is terrible. To have a war in the middle of Europe today is a disaster, a disaster,” he said.
When asked about the proposed India-EU FTA, Forssell said that Sweden will strongly push for an early completion of the pact during its EU presidency.
At the same time, he admitted that there are some obstacles to completing the pact.
Forssell said he discussed the India-EU FTA issue with Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal on Thursday.
“We are looking for an agreement that is in everyone’s interest. There must be discussions and flexibility, but this is one of the areas where we could cooperate during the Swedish presidency (of the EU), he says.
“The growth story of India has only just begun and Sweden wants to be a part of it,” he added.
In June, India and the European Union resumed negotiations on the long-standing trade and investment agreement after a gap of over eight years.
“It is also based on trust. You can’t have it my way or the highway. You have to listen to all sides and see what the obstacles are and then have an open discussion about it, says Forssell.
The minister said that negotiations on the free trade agreement may not be completed by 2023.
“To be honest, I do not think that such an agreement could be completed and signed during the Swedish presidency. But we will try to give it a push forward and maybe for the next presidency to be completed,” he added.
Negotiations on the ambitious free trade agreement were suspended in 2013 after several negotiations spanning six years.
Negotiations on the proposed agreement began in June 2007 and have witnessed many obstacles as both sides had major differences of opinion on crucial issues.
The talks broke down after the two sides failed to iron out differences related to tariffs on certain goods and the trade union movement.
As well as demanding significant tariff cuts on cars, the EU wanted tax cuts on wine, spirits and dairy products and a strong intellectual property rights system.
The Swedish minister said that a reduction in tariffs by India on various products would increase its trade and attract more investment.
“I think the relationship between Sweden and India is based on trust and there is a very positive view of India in Sweden,” he said.
Forssell arrived here on Thursday on his first official trip to India. It is his first trip to Asia, after being appointed Minister of Foreign Trade in Sweden’s new government on 18 October.
Forssell is accompanied by a company delegation of chairmen and CEOs of Swedish companies such as Ericsson, Saab and Perstorp.
India and Sweden have strong cooperation in various fields.
More than 250 Swedish companies are in India and form an important part of the growing economic and trade partnership.
Next year, Sweden and India celebrate 75 years of diplomatic relations.
The key areas for cooperation between the two countries are innovation, health care and green transition.