EU ready to conclude FTA talks with India on 'meaningful package', says envoy Delphin

The European Union is ready to conclude the long-pending Free Trade Agreement (FTA) negotiations with India on a “meaningful and balanced package”, EU Ambassador to India Hervé Delphin has said, ahead of the 14^th round of talks scheduled to start on October 6.

Speaking at the second annual general meeting of the Federation of European Business in India (FEBI), Delphin said the two sides had made “considerable progress”, though “important issues still remain to be resolved”. He said both teams were working hard to achieve the goal set by European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and Prime Minister Narendra Modi to finalise the agreement by the end of this year.

Highlighting the depth of EU-India economic ties, Delphin said European companies have become a vital part of India’s growth story, generating nearly five per cent of the country’s GDP and creating more than three million direct jobs. Around 6,000 EU firms now operate across Indian states, contributing over €186 billion in turnover and €7 billion in taxes last year.

“EU businesses are making in India — they create jobs, invest, manufacture and innovate,” he said, noting that the bloc is India’s largest trading partner, with bilateral trade in goods and services reaching €180 billion in 2024, ahead of both the US and China.

The envoy also unveiled Brussels’ new EU-India Strategic Agenda, a policy vision focused on prosperity, sustainability, technology, security and people-to-people engagement. The agenda proposes setting up an EU-India Business Forum, innovation hubs, and a gateway office to facilitate the mobility of skilled ICT professionals.

Delphin said the proposed FTA and Investment Protection Agreement could be a “game changer” in boosting trade, investment and supply-chain resilience. “The EU and India are complementary economies and natural partners. Our shared principles should guide us towards a fair and forward-looking outcome,” he said.