For the EU, the prospect of a trade or investment agreement with India remains slim for the time being. The European Commission and the Council of the EU say that India is still far from meeting the conditions for an agreement, but that the time is right to move forward with discussions.
The EU-India summit on 8 May should be an opportunity to reaffirm the common interests of both sides on trade and investment, but also to discuss the reform of the World Trade Organisation and the importance of multilateralism in general.
Although the EU sees India as a strategic partner with “like-minded values” in the Indo-Pacific region, not all the elements are in place for an agreement in the coming months.
While the Portuguese Presidency would like to see progress in the discussions on this point, the two sides are still too far apart on several aspects. Regarding the framework, the EU Council considers that an investment agreement will be the most appropriate solution in the first instance. India, for its part, wants to move towards a close free trade agreement, concentrating on a few sectors of interest. However, according to a European diplomat, some Member States reiterated at a preparatory meeting that they did not support the idea of a “minimum” trade agreement.
When it comes to market access, services, investment, public procurement and sustainable development, India still lacks ambition, according to the EU council. “It is difficult to get commitments from the Indians. But there is a momentum that needs to be seized. This will be the first summit with the EU27 and India, and we must take advantage of it to maximise the process. Progress in the areas of trade and investment would be good, even without an agreement”, confided a European diplomat. To do this, the EU intends to use the dialogue to promote multilateralism and rules-based trade with its partner.
India, for its part, is making requests relating to trade in services, mobility of its workers, health and audiovisual services and data protection. In addition, on environmental and human rights issues, the country should provide additional commitments, in the EU’s view.
Objectives of the summit. A first concrete step that the EU hopes to take at the summit is the signing of joint declarations on climate commitments and a connectivity partnership. On the first issue, the EU would like to see India commit to implementing the Paris Agreement.
The area of vaccines and economic recovery will also be discussed and here too the EU is hoping for a joint statement. India is the world’s second-largest producer of vaccines and the EU hopes to agree with it on stronger global health ties. (Original version in French by Léa Marchal)