Trade Policy Forum : India and the US have decided to reschedule their Trade Policy Forum (TPF) to early next year. The bilateral meeting which was to take place between Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal and his US counterpart Katherine Tai sometime later this year, has now been postponed to early 2023 in view of the upcoming US midterm elections in November, said officials.
“It’s a critical midterm election that will determine the makeup of the next United States Congress, the outcome should give India clarity on US political landscape,” an Indian official told agencies.
Mutual consent
The decision was taken mutually by the two countries, sources said.
However, the rescheduling of the trade forum will not affect the political engagements between US and India in the coming days ahead, said the official. He added some top officials of the Biden administration, including US treasury secretary Janet Yellen and commerce secretary Gina Raimondo, are likely to visit New Delhi on November 8 this year and then again on February 13, 2023.
Economic partnership
While Raimondo will meet Piyush Goyal and discuss how to strengthen the India-US trade and economic partnerships, Yellen will meet with Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, said reports.
Piyush Goyal had announced earlier this year that the next Trade Policy Forum between India and the US will take place when he visits Los Angeles for the first Indo-Pacific Economic Framework (IPEF) ministerial.
The Trade Policy Forum aims at resolving trade and investment issues between India and the US. It has five focus groups: Agriculture, Investment, Innovation and Creativity (intellectual property rights), Services, and Tariff and Non-Tariff Barriers. Last TPF was held in New Delhi.
Meanwhile, the Biden administration is also likely to strengthen its defence ties with India to expand its ability to counteract Chinese aggression and resolve coercion in “grey zones” such as disputed land borders.
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