New Delhi: The first round of India Maldives FTA negotiations concluded successfully after both countries made significant progress across eight policy areas during virtual discussions held from June 29 to July 7, 2026.
India’s negotiating team was led by Chief Negotiator Ujjwal Kumar Ghosh, Joint Secretary in the Department of Commerce. The Maldives delegation was headed by Chief Negotiator Yusuf Riza. During the negotiations, both sides held text-based discussions across eight technical sessions. They made substantive progress and reached broad convergence on several issues.
On July 8, Union Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal met Maldives Minister of Economic Development, Transport and Trade Mohamed Saeed. The ministers reviewed ongoing bilateral economic initiatives, including the India Maldives FTA negotiations.
Ministers review India Maldives FTA progress
As India and the Maldives marked 60 years of diplomatic relations, both countries reaffirmed their commitment to expedite the Bilateral Investment Treaty and the Free Trade Agreement. They also agreed to strengthen cooperation in tourism, startups, digital payments, MSMEs and trade to create new economic opportunities.
India remained the Maldives’ second-largest trading partner. Bilateral trade reached USD 771.76 million during 2025–26, compared with USD 679.70 million in 2024–25. The increase represented a growth of 13.54 per cent.
The proposed agreement is expected to improve market access, facilitate investment and expand economic cooperation between the two countries. Both sides said they were working towards a broad-based, balanced and comprehensive agreement based on fairness and reciprocity.
