- Negotiations
The European Union and India launched negotiations on a bilateral free trade and investment agreement in June 2007. However, between the governments, a number of controversies have been plaguing the talks. Delhi wants Brussels to relax its stringent food safety criteria which penalise Indian farm and fishery exports and to make it easier for Indian professionals to work in the EU. Europe is primarily out to win major openings of India’s services sector and broad liberalisation of foreign investment, while India does not want to discuss allowing European firms to compete in India’s government procurement market.
Indian social movements, including fisherfolk and labour unions, people living with HIV/AIDS and other health activists have been mobilizing against the FTA. International actions and campaigns have particularly targeted the proposed intellectual property provisions of the agreement, and the impact of the FTA on access to medicines.
last update: May 2012
Photo: MSF
4-Jun-2009
Live Mint
India on Wednesday said it is committed to expeditiously conclude a free trade agreement with the European Union (EU) and is expecting some headway when the next round of talks take place here in July.
28-May-2009
Business Standard
India will stick to its demand for duty-free access to 95 per cent of the outward trade from India to the European Union (EU), against 90 per cent of that from the EU to India, for a Free Trade Agreement (FTA), a top government official from the commerce ministry said.
21-Apr-2009
PTI
"Concerned" over "child and bonded labour" in India, the European Parliament has strongly pressed the European Union to include the issues in the Free Trade Agreement talks with New Delhi, which is stoutly against inclusion of social issues in commercial deals.
9-Apr-2009
Economic Times
Unlike other bilateral agreements, the potential implications of India-EU FTA would be far-reaching since nine EU-based banks together controlled 65% of total assets of foreign banks in India in 2008. By asset size, out of the top 10 foreign banks in India, six are European.
30-Mar-2009
Traidcraft
In a report released today, Traidcraft shows that the EU-India free trade agreement (FTA) under negotiation, would strip away essential policy tools that India needs to support its economy and safeguard jobs — when European governments are doing all they can to rescue their own economies during these exceptional times.
27-Mar-2009
European Parliament
Disappointed with the slow pace of negotiations, MEPs would like to see a Free Trade Agreement signed with India by the end of 2010, in a report adopted in Strasbourg by the European Parliament.
21-Mar-2009
As the 6th round of negotiations related to the EU-India Free Trade Agreement got underway In Delhi today, the police detained several representatives of public interest groups during a peaceful protest in front of the office of the European Commission. Trade bureaucrats from the EC and Indian Commerce Ministry will deliberate on issues ranging from services, manufacturing, trade facilitation and government procurement till 19 March.
18-Mar-2009
Times of India
As the sixth round of negotiations related to the EU-India Free Trade Agreement (FTA) got underway on Tuesday, the police detained a couple of representatives of public interest groups during a peaceful protest in front of the office of the European Commission (EC).
17-Mar-2009
WSJ
Ahead of the three-day free trade negotiations between India and the European Union, starting on Tuesday, a campaign group led by trade unions and non-profit organizations have asked the government to halt the talks.
14-Mar-2009
This report questions the much-touted benefits of opening up banking sector under the India-EU FTA. Are big European banks going to augment the reach of the banking system to millions of Indians citizens who have no access to basic banking services? What specialization and experience do European banks have when it comes to providing basic banking services to landless rural workers and urban poor dwellers? Will the India-EU FTA reduce the domestic regulatory space?
