‘Christmas wish’: Norway, Switzerland eye trade deal with India before 2024 polls

As Trade Ministers from Switzerland and Norway concluded their visit to Delhi this week, they remain optimistic about reaching an agreement on a trade pact.

With four European countries that make up the European Free Trade Association (EFTA) outside the European Union (EU): Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway, and Switzerland. Negotiations for a trade deal began 15 years ago, and the attempt is to sign an agreement before the General Elections due in India in May 2024.

India Today TV spoke with Norwegian Trade Minister Jan Christian Vestre and Swiss State Secretary for Economic Affairs Helene Budliger Artieda in an exclusive interview.

Q. COP adopted the ‘Global Stocktake’ document even with small island States opposed to key areas that leave them vulnerable. Is the world divided on climate change?

Jan Christian Vestre, Norwegian Trade Minister: First of all, I’m very glad leaders have agreed to step up the game, and this platform is more ambitious compared to whatever we have had in recent years. So, at least that’s a good starting point. According to Norway, it should have been even more ambitious in terms of speeding up the green transition and accelerating the transition into renewable energy.

And that’s also why it’s so important that we work together on this issue among friends and allies and partners like the EFTA countries and India to see how we can partner up and team up to develop new technologies, do R&D together, make sure that we make investments together and utilise all the tremendous potential we find in renewables. What makes me optimistic about this is that now the technology is getting better. We can also scale off the use of new technology to the levels we have never seen before in the history of mankind. The only problem is, and this is one major problem, is that we started this transition way too late. So, basically, we have just a few years left now to reduce global emissions. And that’s why it’s so important and huge, very important economies like the Indian economy are contributing, and that we work together as partners to find the right solutions.