Blitz Bureau
NEW DELHI: Israeli Ambassador to India Reuven Azar has said that Israel expects two more rounds of negotiations with India on the proposed free trade agreement. He said the two sides are likely to have greater clarity on the pact by February 2027, reported IANS. In an interaction with IANS, Azar said the second round of negotiations was held last month, following an agreement on the terms of reference reached at the end of last year.
“We expect to have two more rounds, one in October and probably the last one by February and I think that by then we will know exactly where we stand,” he said. Asked about the potential bene¿ts of the FTA for both countries, Azar said discussions have so far focused on traditional market access issues, but the negotiations also cover areas such as reciprocal buybacks and cooperation.
He said bridging the gap in market access could be challenging because Israel has already lowered its tariႇs and the two markets diႇer considerably in size. However, the Israeli envoy identi¿ed high-tech cooperation as an area with signi¿cant potential for expanding bilateral economic ties. “The greatest potential, I think, lies in high-tech cooperation,” he told IANS.
