India, EAEU in Talks on ‘Temporary Free Trade Zone’: Russian Minister
The EAEU is a five-member economic bloc comprising Russia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and Armenia
Moscow: India and the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU) are discussing a "limited and temporary" trade arrangement covering selected groups of goods as part of negotiations on a proposed free trade agreement, Russia's Economic Development Minister Maxim Reshetnikov has said, according to a media report. Describing the negotiations as "complex", Reshetnikov said on Friday that the Indian side's requests were "quite ambitious".
"Things are more complicated with India: the economy is larger, mutual interests are more complex, so to speak. And, frankly, our colleagues' requests are also quite ambitious," he said in an interview with the Vesti programme, according to the state-run TASS news agency.
"Therefore, we are currently discussing a limited and temporary free trade zone, that is, for a list of goods defined by product groups," he added.
Reshetnikov's remarks came hours after Russian President Vladimir Putin said negotiations on trade liberalisation between India and the EAEU had gained momentum.
Speaking at a meeting of the Supreme Eurasian Economic Council in Kazakhstan's capital Astana, Putin was quoted as saying by TASS: "Last year trade agreements were concluded with Mongolia and the United Arab Emirates, as well as with Indonesia, intensifying negotiations on trade liberalisation with India."
The Russian president added that the EAEU supported launching talks on free trade agreements with new partners and that all aspects of such cooperation would be carefully analysed.
The EAEU is a five-member economic bloc comprising Russia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and Armenia.
It was established in 2015 to promote economic integration through a common market, removal of trade barriers and coordination of economic policies among member states.
The India-EAEU free trade agreement process has gathered momentum in recent years.
In August 2025, India and the EAEU signed the Terms of Reference to formally launch negotiations for a free trade agreement. At the time, the two sides said bilateral trade turnover had reached USD 69 billion in 2024, up seven per cent from the previous year.
The first round of negotiations was held in November last year.
