Assuming a successful conclusion to the trade negotiations with the European Union (EU), India should seek deeper integration into European supply chains and present itself as an alternative to China, Niti Aayog Vice Chairman Suman Bery on Friday said. Bery had a discussion with ambassador of the European Union to India and Bhutan Ugo Astuto across a broad range of issues, including trade negotiations, sustainability and electric mobility.
“Assuming a successful conclusion to the trade negotiations, India should seek deeper integration into European supply chains, presenting itself as an alternative to China,” he said in a series of tweets.
Bery said an explicit goal of the EU is to promote convergence in living standards between richer and poorer member states.
Last week, India and the European Union (EU) finally restarted the negotiations for the long-pending trade and investment agreement after a gap of over eight years.
The negotiations took place in the Belgian capital Brussels.
In April, Astuto had said India and the European Union are eyeing to firm up the comprehensive trade and investment pact before the commencement of the electoral cycles on both sides in 2024.
The negotiations for the ambitious free-trade agreement were suspended in 2013 after several rounds of talks spanning six years.
“@EU_Commission is pleased to announce that EU & India have formally relaunched negotiations for a Free Trade Agreement. I was pleased to welcome Minister @PiyushGoyal to Brussels for talks today,” EU Trade Commissioner Valdis Dombrovskis said in a tweet.
One of the cornerstones of the EU’s trade strategy is trade and sustainable development, and it culminates into provisions related to environment and labour standards in the trade agreement.