Union Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal met with the UK’s Secretary of State for Business and Trade, Jonathan Reynolds, in London yesterday to advance negotiations for a Free Trade Agreement (FTA) between the two nations. Mr Goyal arrived in London for two days of discussions aimed at strengthening investment ties and bilateral trade. External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said that the talks on the Free Trade Agreement between India and the UK are being relaunched, and both sides are committed to moving the agreement forward.

Earlier in February, the Ministry of Commerce and Industry said that India and the UK have resumed negotiations towards a Free Trade Agreement. This announcement was made by Union Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal and his UK counterpart, Jonathan Reynolds, who was in Delhi. It said the two sides have agreed to resume negotiations towards a balanced, mutually beneficial, and forward-looking deal that delivers mutual growth and builds on the strengths of two complementary economies. Mr Goyal’s visit comes within a month of Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman’s visit to the UK amid parallel discussions for a Bilateral Investment Treaty (BIT) alongside the FTA negotiations.