India-EU FTA unlikely before 2012
EUROPEAN Union Trade Commissioner, Mr Karel De Gucht, conceded that the free trade agreement (FTA) between India and the EU was unlikely to be finalised before 2012.
He said this after discussions on the FTA at the meeting of the EU Foreign Affairs Council in Brussels recently. Mr De Gucht expressed the hope that the outstanding issues would be sorted out before the next India-EU summit in February.
He avowed that the task was not easy even though the EU’s determination to achieve the deal was as "strong as ever".
Source : Exim News Service - LONDON, Oct. 30