Trade talks between India and Canada may intensify as Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal, his Canadian counterpart Mary Ng and their chief negotiators held trade talks during the World Trade Organization (WTO) ministerial talks in Geneva.
Canada’s High Commissioner Cameron Mackay said in an interview that the two sides have held two rounds of talks as New Delhi and Ottawa resumed trade talks in March after a gap of nearly a decade, and a third round will begin next month.
McKay said talks are in the early stages but a trade deal can be done if there is genuine political will. He said Canada shares India’s sensitivity to dairy imports. Edited excerpt:
How durable can India-Canada trade ties be as talks take place at a time when Canada’s ties with China have deteriorated and supply chains are being re-adjusted globally?
The mantra of Canada’s trade policy is diversification. We have a lot of trade with America. We have very important trade with the European Union, Japan and China as well as many other countries. The Indian economy is growing so fast and there is so much potential and we have so much complementarity between the two economies that we see India as a really important country for Canada’s business diversification strategy.
What is the stage of India-Canada FTA talks? Are we looking at FTA or early harvest?
Since our trade ministers resumed talks this March, we have had two rounds of talks, and the third is being scheduled for the coming months. We are still at a relatively early stage of negotiations.
Bilateral trade talks are like climbing a mountain, so you are tied up with your partner and you are trying to reach the summit. And as you go up, you can only reach the top with your partner. It’s always the last few 100 meters that are the hardest. So you start at the bottom and it’s relatively easy. The higher you get, the more difficult it becomes. We are still at the foot of the mountain. However, if we are both committed, if there is real political will, we absolutely can do it.
We are making much better progress this time than we were 10 years ago. But as we move forward, there are some very difficult issues to be overcome.
How will you respond to concerns that developed nations do not understand developing countries and their priorities, especially as they seek full market access?
In fact, we have a lot of experience in negotiating trade agreements, including in developing countries. Canada already has FTAs in the US, for example Colombia and Peru. So we are very experienced in negotiating with developing and developed countries.
Will oil and gas exports to India be part of a plan to counter Russian oil in India?
Almost all of our oil goes to the US at refineries in Texas and then to global markets. Indian Oil and some Indian companies had earlier imported some consignments of Canadian crude oil. In the absence of a state-owned crude oil supplier in Canada, Indian importers are unable to enter into long-term supply contracts with Canadian crude suppliers, a requirement set by the Indian authorities.
(Disha Seth contributed to the story)