ENA Global 2025-06-16 15:36:35 <p><span style="font-size:14px"><strong>New Delhi, Jun 16 (KNN)</strong> Government sources have revealed that negotiations between India and the European Union (EU) for a Free Trade Agreement (FTA) have gained momentum, with the frequency of discussions increasing from quarterly to monthly.</span></p> <p><span style="font-size:14px">This intensified engagement comes as both sides aim to reach an early harvest deal by July 2025, similar to India's agreement with Australia.</span></p> <p><span style="font-size:14px">Indian officials have raised concerns over EU regulations like the Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM) and the EU Deforestation Regulation (EUDR), which they argue could disrupt business.</span></p> <p><span style="font-size:14px">In response, the EU has questioned India's Quality Control Orders (QCOs), calling them non-tariff barriers. However, India has maintained that QCOs apply uniformly to domestic and foreign firms.</span></p> <p><span style="font-size:14px">The early harvest pact will cover critical issues such as tariff and non-tariff barriers, intellectual property rights, government procurement, technical barriers to trade, and sanitary and phytosanitary measures.</span></p> <p><span style="font-size:14px">As part of a two-stage approach, India and the EU are also working on a bilateral investment protection agreement and recognition of geographical indications (GIs).</span></p> <p><span style="font-size:14px">Out of 23 negotiating chapters, five were closed in the previous round, with talks spanning areas like trade in goods and services, investment protection, customs procedures, and sustainable development.</span></p> <p><span style="font-size:14px">India has proposed mutual recognition in areas such as technical barriers to trade (TBT) and sanitary and phytosanitary (SPS) measures.</span></p> <p><span style="font-size:14px">Recent meetings between Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal and EU leaders, including the Trade Commissioner and ministers from France, Italy, and Sweden, highlight the strategic importance of these talks.</span></p> <p><span style="font-size:14px">In FY23-24, India-EU bilateral goods trade reached USD 137.41 billion, making the EU Indias largest trading partner. Indian exports to the EU stood at USD 75.92 billion, while imports totaled USD 61.48 billion.</span></p> <p><em><strong><span style="font-size:14px">(KNN Bureau)</span></strong></em></p> 42464 https://knnindia.co.in/news/newsdetails/global/eu-red-flags-qcos-india-cbam-during-india-eu-fta-talks 2025-06-16 15:36:35 knnindia.co.in