Minister of State for Commerce Nirmala Sitharaman has said that India is committed to an early and balanced outcome of the European Union (EU) Broadbased Trade and Investment Agreement (BTIA) negotiations. EU BTIA negotiations are underway and 16 rounds of negotiations have been held so far, the minister has said that the government is committed to an early and balanced outcome of the negotiations.
India-EU BTIA talks are related to trade in goods and services, sanitary and phyto-sanitary measures, intellectual property rights, technical barriers to trade, dispute settlement, customs and trade facilitation and procurement among others.
Talking about Trade Facilitation Agreement (TFA) of the World Trade Organization, she said it aims to expedite movement, release and clearance of goods, including goods in transit and also sets out measures for effective cooperation between customers and other appropriate authorities on trade facilitation and customs compliance issues. It further contains provisions for technical assistance and capacity building in that area.