FTAs are legally valid in perpetuity and hence need detailing: Barthwal

Free Trade Agreements (FTAs) are legal documents valid in perpetuity so one needs to do a very detailed exercise while forging such pacts which could sometimes take a long time, Commerce Secretary Sunil Barthwal has said. 

“FTAs are means of economic integration between countries and India looks forward to these pacts…As these are legal documents in perpetuity, you need to do a detailed exercise. Sometimes we feel why it (FTA negotiations) is taking time. But we have to see that interests are aligned with long term policy (of the government),” Barthwal said said at CII’s Global Economic Policy Forum.

While India recently forged some FTAs quickly, which include a mini trade deal with Australia and a full-fledged comprehensive economic partnership agreement with the UAE, it is taking more time with partners such as the UK and the EU.

In fact, in order to avoid short sighted decisions while negotiating FTAs, the Commerce Department has worked standard operating procedure (SOP) documents which it will shortly finalise. The SOPs are meant to ensure that all India’s short term and long term interests get covered adequately in its future free trade pacts.

Commenting on recent interactions with EU officials in Brussels on the ongoing FTA negotiations, Barthwal said that he conveyed that FTAs should not be looked at only from the legalists or regulatory practices point of view. It also needs to be looked at from the view of integration of value chains,” he said.

Barthwal noted that developed countries seemed to be confused about the concept of migration and mobility.  “We are not asking for migration, we are asking for mobility,” he said.

He stressed the need to build a narrative that mobility was essential for growth of the services sector as a whole.

The Commerce Secretary also made a case for promoting Mutual Recognition Agreements, under which partner countries recognise services qualifications gained in each other’s countries, to increase trade in services. 

“There is a huge possibility of providing professional services and therefore MRAs are very important,” he said.

Related Content

Capricorn on course at Karlawinda

Universal Healthcare milestones face delays after reduction in budget allocations — BMI

Customs order implementing PHL-South Korea FTA released

Leave a Comment