India and the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU) have taken the initiative for free-trade talks, with India requesting the latest trade data from the EAEU countries, Business Standard reported.
"Preliminary talks on the issue are underway. India has requested trade data from all five countries for an assessment," a source told the publication.
India and the EAEU drafted a trade agreement in March 2020, but it was postponed because of the Covid-19 pandemic. In January 2022, the two sides submitted the final wording of the terms of the planned trade agreement, but further negotiations and work on the trade agreement were hampered because of the beginning of the Russian special military operation in Ukraine.
India's trade turnover with the EAEU in the 2022-23 full year amounted to $50.3 billion. Meanwhile, trade turnover with Russia was $49.3 billion, with Kazakhstan $641 million, with Armenia $135.3 million, with Belarus $111.8 million and with Kyrgyzstan $56.6 million. Supplies of crude oil from Russia were the main cause for the growth of trade with Russia.
The EAEU consists of five countries - Russia, Armenia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, and Kyrgyzstan. Russia is not only the largest country in this group, but its share of trade with India in the 2023 economic year was 98 percen. If the trade agreement is concluded, it will strengthen relations between India and Russia.