'Very, very close': EU Trade Commissioner Maros Sefcovic on signing of India-EU FTA

New Delhi [India], January 26 (ANI): Maros Sefcovic, the European Union Trade Commissioner, said in an interview to Euro News that India and EU are very close towards having a signature as they finalise the much anticipated free trade agreement.

Speaking to Euro News, Sefcovic said, "We are checking the latest documents, we are exchanging the last numbers and I believe that we are very, very close."

When asked by Euro News if the deal would be signed on Tuesday, the EU Trade Commisioner said, "We do our utmost and I believe we will have a signature ". 

Upon being asked that Indians have been tough negotiators, he told Euro News, "I think they are known for being very tough negotiators  and also our starting positions have been very different. They had a high tariff. They are a developing country and we wanted to respect the specificity and at the same time to protect the European general interest."

Sefcovic, who on Monday attended the Republic Day parade on Kartavya Path earlier said that this was fitting moment to reaffirm the partnership with India.

"Being invited as a guest for India's Republic Day is a profound honour. There could be no more fitting moment to reaffirm our partnership and to strengthen it further through the conclusion of an ambitious EU-India FTA," he posted on X. 

In a significant move to bolster ties between two of the world's largest democracies, the European Union (EU) and India are set to unveil a "Security and Defence Strategic Partnership" and are closing in on a landmark Free Trade Agreement (FTA) during the upcoming summit, EU official confirmed. 

Terming the current period as a "culmination of remarkable intensifying relations," the official noted that both sides now recognize that their security and prosperity are fundamentally linked in a shifting global landscape.

A key deliverable of the summit will be the signing of the Security and Defence Partnership by the EU's HRVP Kaja Kallas and Defence Minister Rajnath Singh. This marks only the third such comprehensive agreement the EU has signed in Asia, following Japan and the Republic of Korea. 

President of the EU Commission, Ursula von der Leyen said yesterday that Europe and India have chosen strategic partnership, dialogue and openness.

Von der Leyen said that India and Europe are building mutual resilience.

Earlier in Davos, von der Leyen stated the European Union is close to finalising a Free Trade Agreement with India and noted that some describe it "the mother of all deals"

Addressing the World Economic Forum in Davos, she stressed Europe's intent to expand trade and international cooperation

She also referred to the scale of the proposed trade deal with India.

"There is still work to do. But we are on the cusp of a historic trade agreement. Some call it the mother of all deals. One that would create a market of 2 billion people, accounting for almost a quarter of global GDP," von der Leyen said. 

President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen and President of the European Council, Antonio Luis Santos da Costa, were the Chief Guests for the 2026 Republic Day celebrations.

India's 77th Republic Day parade concluded on Monday after a spectacular showcase of the country's military might and diverse culture at Kartavya Path.

Republic Day, observed annually on January 26, marks the day India adopted its Constitution in 1950, officially becoming a sovereign, socialist, secular, and democratic republic. The day holds immense historical significance as it represents the culmination of India's long struggle for independence and the establishment of constitutional governance based on justice, liberty, equality and fraternity.

While independence on August 15, 1947, ended colonial rule, it was the adoption of the Constitution that completed India's transition to self-governance based on law, institutional accountability, and the will of the Indians. (ANI)