India's Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal suggested that the four-nation Mercosur organization and India look into forging bilateral free-trade agreements.

His remarks take on importance given the lack of progress in attempts to broaden the scope of the Preferential Trade Agreement (PTA) between India and the Mercosur trade bloc, which consists of Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay, and Uruguay.

He said that India was signing bilateral deals that would aid in the growth of its trade.

Goyal added that India and Chile are collaborating to develop their PTA into a Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement.  Signed in 2006, the PTA with Chile was extended in 2017.  The free trade agreements with Peru are in advanced stages within the 33-nation LAC region.

He stated that India is dedicated to strengthening its ties with the LAC nations in spite of obstacles such as the global economic recession, supply chain interruptions, and varying foreign direct investment.

When negotiations to reach a trade agreement with the countries of the Gulf Cooperation Council were not progressing, India proceeded with a bilateral trade agreement with the United Arab Emirates.

 

Goyal noted that in the three years since the deal, trade between India and the UAE has doubled.  The minister also advocated for the FTA negotiations to end sooner rather than later.  According to him, long-term agreements that are negotiated over ten to twenty rounds cannot develop into strong collaborations.

"We have been talking about a free trade agreement with Peru for a very long time. We need to make up our minds on where we want to get with that'¦FTAs that are negotiated over as much as 20 rounds, negotiated over engagements in once in six months or 12 months can never fructify into solid partnership," Goyal said.

"We must make up our mind either we do it (FTA), we do it fast. Or we agree to trade the way we are and see what we can do best within our existing arrangement," he added.

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"Any agreement we are looking at also has to address how we will ensure that non-market economies do not make use of your region as a route to come to India," Goyal said. Non-market economies include China, among other nations.