After 15 years of inking the Free Trade Agreement with the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), India plans to modify it. So far, India has been offering a single tariff schedule for all the 10 ASEAN nations but it now wants the flexibility to offer concessions to each ASEAN country on a bilateral basis. The third round of the negotiations are scheduled to take place in Jakarta, Indonesia, from July 29 to 31, and the review is expected to be completed by 2025. India is preparing for discussions on concessions. Under the current arrangement, India cannot selectively open up sectors to some ASEAN countries while protecting them from others due to specific sensitivities. A single tariff schedule does not allow for such nuance.
