India-EU FTA talks may gain momentum with Spain taking over EU presidency

The two countries have also agreed to enhance cooperation in areas such as civil aviation, automation, surveillance, high speed railways and related areas.

These aspects were discussed during the 12th session of the India-Spain Joint Commission for Economic Cooperation (JCEC) held in New Delhi on 13 April.

Commerce Secretary Sunil Barthwal and Spain’s Secretary of State for Trade Xiana Mendez co-chaired the session as both sides celebrated the Golden Jubilee edition of the India-Spain Joint Commission Mechanism, which was established in 1972. During the last 50 years, there has been a significant increase in bilateral trade and investment.

Commerce and Ministry said, “With an investment of $3.7 billion, 250 Spanish companies are active in India and 40 Indian companies are present in Spain, operating in various sectors such as IT, pharma, renewable energy, automobile and infrastructure ” the industry said.

Scheana emphasized the importance of India-Spain relations and Spain’s partnership in India’s growth story. The Spanish side confirmed further cooperation in various areas, including in the field of civil aviation, such as automation, surveillance and navigations, high speed railways, railway networking, signalling, traffic management, etc.

Both sides also agreed for further cooperation in the fields of renewable energy, shipping, ports, tourism, infrastructure, food processing, pharmaceuticals, technology, innovation and defense sector.

The status of various MoUs was also reviewed, including MoUs of significant interest to the bilateral relationship such as MoU on Migration and Mobility, Agreement on Social Security, Cyber ​​Security etc.

Both sides also discussed various market access issues being faced by their exporters and agreed to resolve the same through bilateral discussions.