Both sides reviewed the status of the negotiations for the 'India-UAE Bilateral Investment Treaty'

Bilateral relations between India and the UAE are experiencing "unprecedented momentum" Union Minister Piyush Goyal said on Tuesday.

Speaking at the 10th Meeting of the India-UAE High-Level Joint Task Force (JTF) on Investments, he referred to numerous opportunities for cooperation in important sectors like infrastructure and technology.

Goyal was co-chairing the JTF's ninth meeting with Sheikh Hamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, member of the Executive Council of the Emirate of Abu Dhabi, in Mumbai.

During the meeting, they acknowledged the early trends of the historic India-UAE CEPA's positive impact on bilateral commerce between the two countries since it came into force in May 2022. They also urged businesspeople on both sides to take full advantage of the favourable trade environment established by CEPA.

Delegations from both countries reviewed the current status of the negotiations for the "India-UAE Bilateral Investment Treaty." Both sides also agreed that significant progress could have been made since the discussions began and reaffirmed their commitment to moving the process along quickly in order to reach an early agreement that is equitable for both sides.

Additionally, they spoke about how to increase bilateral investments in important fields, including technology, industry, infrastructure, and food security. The proposal from the UAE for specific UAE sovereign investment firms to get tax incentives under the current "UAE-India Tax Treaty" was also discussed by both parties.

Later, it was decided that bilateral discussions should go on in order to find a solution that is advantageous to both parties and fulfils their respective policy goals.

Regarding ongoing discussions between the Reserve Bank of India and the Central Bank of the United Arab Emirates on the creation of a mechanism for conducting bilateral trade in national currencies, known as the Unified Payment Interface (UPI), as a common digital payment platform, both parties agreed to continue their dialogue.

As per the official statement from the Ministry of Commerce & Industry of India, the two sides recognized the significance of using the Joint Task Force as a forum to address specific issues and challenges faced by the companies when investing in each other's countries, against the favorable backdrop provided by the extensive and expanding trade and investment relationship between India and the UAE.