New Delhi: A day after a report by British newspaper The Times claimed that India has “disengaged” from FTA (free trade agreement) talks with the UK over the Khalistan issue, an official attached with the UK High Commission in Delhi said Monday that the UK remains committed to delivering the trade deal, adding that the eighth round of talks between the two countries concluded just last month.
In response to an email query, a spokesperson from the UK mission’s Department for Business and Trade told ThePrint, “Both the UK and India are committed to delivering an ambitious and mutually beneficial FTA and concluded the latest round of trade talks last month.”
“The Foreign Secretary (James Cleverly) has condemned the recent acts of violence at the Indian High Commission, and we are working with the Metropolitan Police to review security and make changes to ensure the safety of its staff,” the spokesperson added.
Meanwhile, a spokesperson for the Indian Ministry of Commerce and Industry said he could not confirm whether trade talks are on hold or not. ThePrint also spoke to a consultant part of the ongoing trade talks who confirmed that neither trade negotiating groups in the UK nor India have received any guidelines that trade talks have been “halted” or “stalled”.
According to industry experts, ThePrint spoke to, three sticky issues remain: tariffs on alcohol and automobiles and visa mobility.
The domestic liquor industry in India has been pushing against the demand for the removal of tariffs on Scotch whisky, which has been a major ask from the British side.
However, the heads of international liquor bodies like International Spirits and Wines Association of India (ISWAI) and domestic bodies like Confederation of Indian Alcoholic Beverage Companies (CIABC) told ThePrint that the latest round of talks was “amicable”, despite the emergence of the Khalistan controversy.
The eighth round of talks, held in Delhi from 20 to 31 March, began a day after an Indian flag was pulled down by pro-Khalistan protesters at the Indian mission in London.
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Report on FTA talks ‘signalling exercise’?
Some experts claim the report by the British newspaper was a “signalling” attempt.
“Linking the trade talks with the Khalistan issue doesn’t seem accurate. This report could have been a deliberate leak or a signalling exercise,” Manoj Joshi, a Distinguished Fellow at the think tank ORF specialising in national and international politics, told ThePrint.
On Monday, The Times reported that India had ‘halted’ trade negotiations after accusing the UK of failing to condemn pro-Khalistan protesters who attacked the Indian high commission in London last month.
Citing senior British government sources, the report said the Indian government has “disengaged” from trade talks and seeks no progress without a public condemnation of the Khalistan movement from the UK government.
(Edited by Amrtansh Arora)
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