Strasbourg, 29/09/2006 (Agence Europe) - In adopting the own initiative report by Sajjad Karim (ALDE, UK), the European Parliament gave its backing to the development of trade potential and direct foreign investment in India, in particular in infrastructure (for the expert public hearing, see EUROPE 9185). “With the full backing of the Commission, this report is an essential building block of the EU's external policy review and provides a real platform for the EU-India Summit” (on 13 October), said Mr Karim in a press release. “Only through clinching strategic partnerships with new areas of growth in Asia, will the EU secure open markets, fairer trading conditions and growth and prosperity for Europe in the 21st century,” he stressed. The report also looks at the economic and social situation in India, development, environmental and institutional issues, and calls in particular for an annual summit between European and Indian parliamentarians. Given India's influence in the G20, MEPs are pressing New Delhi to find a balanced compromise for an agreement within the framework of the Doha Round before the end of the year, but consider that bilateral agreements are not incompatible with the multilateral WTO negotiations. “A successful Doha Round is the most effective way of ensuring increased global liberalisation, but it does not rule out a Free Trade Agreement with India,” Mr Karim pointed out. In the plenary session on Wednesday, Commissioner Joe Borg agreed that, “The Doha development agenda does not preclude bilateral free trade agreements, and the conclusion of such free trade agreements does not, and would not, prejudice the completion of the Doha development agenda”. Pointing out that the high level EU-India group on trade had completed its report on 19 September ahead of the Summit, Dr Borg said that this report advocated an extended trade partnership through the negotiation of a wide agreement on trade and investment, and hoped that, at the Summit the parties would announce that they “are ready to take the necessary steps to start negotiations”.
The Karim report also calls for the on-going dialogue on human rights to be maintained, as both partners are engaged in a joint action plan adopted at the seventh EU-India Summit in September 2005 (see EUROPE 9022). MEPs also stressed that the Millennium development goals and combating poverty must remain key elements in the strategic partnership formed in 2004 (see EUROPE 8823), and launched a call for specific measures to be taken to help minorities like the Dalits or Adivasis and other marginalised communities, tribes or castes.