Canada surprisingly announced on September 1 that it had halted talks over a proposed trade deal with India, just three months after the two nations said they planned to finalize a first deal this year.
Since 2010, Canada and India have repeatedly discussed a comprehensive economic partnership agreement. Talks officially resumed last year.
“Trade negotiations are long, complex processes. And we’ve paused to take stock of our current state,” a government official told reporters ahead of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s trip to Delhi next week.
The official, who spoke on condition that his name not be released, declined to give further details.
India’s envoy to Canada, Sanjay Kumar Verma, told the Canadian press on September 1 that Ottawa had sought a pause “within the last month” but did not explain why.
India and Canada announced in May that they plan to finalize a first deal this year to expand trade and expand investment, while establishing a dispute-settlement mechanism.
Last month, a senior Indian trade official said Delhi plans to hold bilateral free trade talks with Canada and other nations on the sidelines of next week’s G20 summit. Trudeau will attend the meeting.
Neither Trudeau’s office nor the office of Commerce Secretary Mary Ng were immediately available for comment.
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