New Delhi [India], May 12 (ANI): Union Minister of Commerce & Industry Piyush Goyal on Tuesday held discussions with Francisco Perez Mackenna, Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Chile and members of the Chilean delegation to review progress in the proposed India-Chile Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) and explore ways to strengthen bilateral trade and investment ties.

The discussions focused on deepening trade, investment, and strategic partnerships

Sharing details of the meeting in a post on X, Goyal said the two sides discussed measures to deepen economic engagement and strengthen the strategic partnership between India and Chile.'We reviewed the progress of the India-Chile Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) negotiations and discussed ways to further deepen our trade, investment, and strategic partnership,' Goyal said in his X post.The minister said India values its longstanding relationship with Chile and remains committed to broadening bilateral cooperation. 'India values its warm and longstanding partnership with Chile, and we remain committed to expanding our economic engagement and people-to-people ties for shared growth and prosperity,' he said.The meeting comes as both countries continue engagement on the proposed CEPA aimed at strengthening trade relations and expanding economic cooperation.The proposed CEPA between India and Chile aims to expand the scope of the existing Preferential Trade Agreement (PTA) and cover a wider range of sectors, including digital services, investment promotion, MSMEs and critical minerals.India and Chile signed a Framework Agreement on Economic Cooperation in 2005, followed by a PTA in 2006. An expanded PTA was signed in 2016 and came into force in 2017. Both sides later agreed to further expand the pact, with three rounds of negotiations held between 2019 and 2021.To deepen economic ties, the two countries agreed to negotiate a CEPA after a Joint Study Group under the framework agreement recommended a broader pact to boost trade, exports, employment and investment cooperation. The Joint Study Group report was finalised and signed on April 30, 2024.The move was reaffirmed during the visit of Gabriel Boric to India in April 2025, when both sides welcomed the signing of the Terms of Reference and formally launched CEPA negotiations aimed at a comprehensive and mutually beneficial trade agreement. (ANI)