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Australian Prime Minister's Special Envoy Tony Abbott on Friday expressed confidence that India and Australia will meet the deadline to finalize the proposed trade pact, which aims to strengthen economic ties between the two countries.

India and Australia have agreed to sign a long-pending free trade agreement officially known as the Comprehensive Economic Cooperation Agreement (CECA) by the end of 2022 and an early harvest trade agreement by the end of this year.

In an early harvest agreement, two trading partners significantly reduce or eliminate tariffs on a certain number of goods, these tariffs have been removed on the maximum number of goods traded between them in a free trade agreement or CECA. They also liberalize norms to improve trade in services and encourage investment in a CECA.

"The main purpose of this visit is to ensure that we can get the best possible trade deal between India and Australia as soon as possible ..." "Based on discussions last night with (Trade and Industry) Minister Piyush Goyal and senior members of his Teams, I am confident that by the end of the year or very early in the New Year we can get a very good deal on the early harvest that is bigger rather than smaller ... "Abbott told reporters. "Based on the discussions we had last night, I am sure that the schedule will be met," he said.

Both countries started negotiations on a CECA in May 2011, but negotiations were suspended in 2015 due to certain disagreements over issues such as Canberra’s market access for agriculture and dairy products and New Delhi's request for visa liberalization for working people.

When asked about India's sensitivity to agriculture, Abbott said: "Australia accepts that because of the nature of Indian agriculture, unlike the much larger commercial operations in Australia, there are very many small family farms are some important sensitivities in Indian agriculture".

In a good and fair trade deal, there are some elements of Indian agriculture that need to be worked out, he added.

“I am confident that we can make great strides, and one of the areas where we can make great strides, even with the early harvest agreement, is wine ... I hope that more and more people in India have an affordable opportunity To experience this great Australian product in the months and years to come, "he said.

With regard to the smooth movement of skilled workers, he was also confident that "within the framework of this agreement, mobility between the two countries will be improved". He added that dairy products are also one of the sensitive areas. "The point I want to emphasize is that Australia is not a predatory trader, we are free and fair traders and our aim here is not to interfere, our aim here is to partner up," he said. One of Australia's major exports to India is coal, and these goods are key to Make in India.

Additionally, he said that many countries have trade tensions with China and this is an interesting moment for India as several nations are looking for a replacement for China in their supply chains and India is the obvious alternative "because almost no country has India's ability to operate economically to produce". and in scale ".

In the 2020-21 period, India's exports to Australia were $ 4.04 billion, while imports were $ 8.24 billion.

India mainly exported refined petroleum, medicines, rail vehicles including hover trains, pearls and gems, jewelry, and made-up textiles. Imports include coal, copper ores and concentrates, gold, vegetables, wool, fruits and nuts, lentils, and education-related services.

Meeting with @HonTonyAbbott, Special Envoy for the Australian Prime Minister.

Had an extensive discussion of the enormous potential India and Australia have to further strengthen and expand our bilateral relationship through the Free Trade Agreement (FTA) for mutual economic prosperity. pic.twitter.com/lq1LyNGUWg

- Piyush Goyal (@PiyushGoyal) December 2, 2021

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Likewise, bilateral trade with the UAE has grown to $ 49.06 billion in 2021, from $ 29.48 billion in 2020 over the same period.

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