Mumbai, India, Oct 29 (EFE).- Spain’s Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez, who is on an official visit to India, said Tuesday that his country was an “ideal base” for Indian companies to expand throughout the European Union, and urged the removal of barriers to pave the way for a free trade agreement between the Asian country and Europe.
Sánchez chaired a business forum organized in Mumbai, in which the Indian Minister of Road Transport and Highways, Nitin Gadkari, as well as representatives from some 150 Indian and 120 Spanish companies participated.
Sánchez said that the forum showed the power of the alliance between Spain and India.
He highlighted the evolution of trade relations between the two countries, pointing out that the total value of trade in 2023 exceeded 7.5 billion euros ($8.10 billion), 30 percent more than two years earlier.
But he added that economic relations went far beyond bilateral trade and listed three aspects that he believed were essential to explain the strength of the alliance.
The first, according to him, was the growing presence of Spanish companies in India.
The Spanish prime minister pointed out that Spain had invested $4.2 billion in India since 2000 and more than 230 companies were operating in the Asian country presently.
He added that many prominent Indian information technology, automotive and pharmaceutical companies were also established in Spain.
Sánchez described the Spanish economy as “the ideal base” to expand to the rest of the European market and beyond.
He said that the potential of the relationship between India and the European Union was enormous and expressed his eagerness to move forward in negotiations on a free trade agreement between the EU and India.
But he added that in order for that to happen, ambitious proposals needed to be put forward to remove the remaining barriers.
The Spanish prime minister also praised India’s sustainable growth model and said that it had a reserve of young talent that was an asset for digitalized economies.
Sánchez said that he wanted to the growth of India and, in particular, of three strategic sectors: renewable energies and sustainable development, infrastructure and urban mobility, and digitalization.
He pointed out that Spain was a world leader in renewable energy and a model for countries seeking a transition towards greener energy systems.
Despite some Spanish companies already collaborating in this area with India, Sánchez said that there was enormous potential for many more.
He also offered Spanish companies the opportunity to participate in Indian projects in the area of high-speed railway networks, highways, ports and airports.
The Spanish leader also highlighted the possibility of increasing collaboration in the automotive industry to develop electric vehicles, batteries and charging infrastructure.
The Indian transport minister, for his part, said that his country was among the most important in the world in of young talent, engineering and labor and highlighted the strength of its industry.
He also stressed the importance of infrastructure in the areas of water, energy, transport and communications, saying that they were essential to attract investments, which would serve to create employment and reduce poverty.
He praised the work that many Spanish companies are doing in these sectors and highlighted in particular the work they are doing in the field of water purification, before calling for increased bilateral collaboration. EFE
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