Expect satisfactory outcome in bilateral settlement of WTO disputes with US : Piyush Goyal

New Delhi : Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal on Thursday expressed optimism for a satisfactory outcome in bilateral settlement of WTO disputes with the US.

Addressing the media after the conclusion of the 13th Ministerial Trade Policy Forum (TPF) dialogue in Washington, he said that the forum has resulted in a smoother, friendly and trusted business environment for businesses from both sides to expand their trade and investment.

He said that both sides had a robust discussion on finding bilateral solutions to outstanding WTO disputes between them and hoped for a satisfactory outcome in the next few months over these issues.

About the 13th Ministerial TPF dialogue, Goyal said that issues related to resolving WTO disputes, restarting of exports of wild caught shrimps, speeding up of business visas, resilient supply chains, data flow, and addressing climate change were discussed.

The TPF, which was relaunched in a new form in November 2021, has become a very robust and outcome oriented platform to have free and frank discussion on a plethora of issues of mutual interest, he added.

Explaining the background on exports of wild caught shrimps from India to the US, Goyal said exports were banned by the US due to concerns around turtles in the areas where shrimps were being fished.

He said that fruitful discussions took place between both for restarting wild caught shrimps exports. He said that a turtle excluder device which will minimise impact of fishing on sea turtle population has been designed with support from the US.

The minister said that exports will be restarted post the successful completion of trials of these devices. Goyal said India has requested the US to expedite the issuance of business visas to facilitate faster movement of business persons across both sides.

Another important focus issue was the discussion around strengthening resilient global supply chains. Goyal said both the countries are keen to have an effective and trusted supply chain between them in several areas including telemedicine services.

He further informed that discussions took place on environmental issues around sustainable finance to promote innovative clean technology, circular economy, and technology required to address climate change.

He informed that both nations have shared interest to have greater flow of data between two countries and are continuing engagement on data protection and privacy. The minister also announced that a new TPF working group on resilient trade has been created.

“This new working group will enable both sides to deepen our dialogue on a range of issues which will help us enhance our resilient supply chains and also help us create sustainable bilateral trade relationships to meet challenges of tomorrow.”

Briefing about his meeting with his US counterpart Gina Raimondo, Goyal said he had a positive dialogue and that she will visit India in March along with a high-powered delegation of CEOs.

He said CEO forums on both sides are putting in lots of effort to come up with a robust framework to help expand trade business and manufacturing. Goyal told media persons that several other aspects related to India becoming self-sufficient in areas like semiconductor, defence production, strengthening laws around quality standards, were also discussed.

He also informed India will be hosting the next round of talks on IPEF in February in New Delhi. About his engagements with CEOs of US companies during the course of his visit, the minister said they are looking at India as a trusted partner to diversify their dependence on the geographies and to expand their own manufacturing set-ups.

US companies have ambitious plans and are looking to invest large capital and bring technology to India, Goyal added.