India is inching closer to finalising a Free Trade Agreement (FTA) with the European Union, with detailed negotiations currently underway, the Union Commerce Ministry told CNBC-TV18. Talks with the United States are also progressing, and officials are optimistic that a deal will materialise.The ministry added that while the EU deal is within reach, the FTA dialogue with the US is steadily advancing and expected to fructify in due course.
Adding that no one FTA can be a template for another, the ministry said that India’s changing trade posture as a maturing economy makes it ready to explore sectors it had previously stayed away from. “We are entering areas we hadn’t gotten into earlier,” a senior official said.
On concerns around Intellectual Property Rights (IPR), the ministry said that Indian patent law is globally respected for forming a balance between innovation and public health, and that it will remain unaffected. “The FTA doesn’t enter the domain of Indian law on IPR. Our legal framework will continue to prevail,” the ministry stated.A “huge balance” has also been achieved in the IPR chapter with respect to generic medicines, whereas Indian Geographical Indication (GI) products are expected to gain better market access through these trade pacts.
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