NEW DELHI: India “doesn’t engage as a meek country,” Union commerce minister Piyush Goyal said on Wednesday asserting that “trust and negotiation from a position of strength,” have defined the country’s recent trade successes.Speaking at the Global Economic Cooperation Summit in Mumbai, Goyal said India’s approach to economic diplomacy is rooted in engagement, confidence and long-term vision.“Today, India doesn’t engage as a meek country. We are not apologetic about some of the problems that we have. We are negotiating for the future,” he said, describing trade agreements as long-term investments in India’s growth over the coming decades.Highlighting India’s recent record, Goyal noted that the country has signed nine trade agreements since 2022, many of which had been under discussion for nearly two decades. Summing up his strategy in one word, he said: “trust.”“The day you can generate enough confidence in your counterparty that you can be trusted, and the day you trust the person on the other side, the country on the other side, the pathway becomes that much easier,” he said.He added that India has negotiated these agreements “from a position of strength,” while keeping national interests at the forefront. Safeguarding farmers, MSMEs, fishermen and jobs has remained central to discussions.”Our farmers and MSMEs are fully protected. Not a single farmer will have cause for concern,” he said.“We haven’t opened a dairy for any country whatsoever,” he added, underlining that sensitive sectors continue to be protected.“When you’re sincere, you’re honest, when you are able to logically show your position and demonstrate your strength with full sincerity,” he said, it becomes easier to secure favourable terms.Goyal also outlined an expansive vision of India’s economic diplomacy. “I think the first principle of economic diplomacy is that don’t sit so far away from your stakeholders. Come closer to them,” he said.He stressed that India is “at the forefront of building alliances, building friendships, aligning our own trade, our own investment imperatives with the rest of the world.”Outlining India’s long-term ambitions, Goyal said the country aims to become a USD 30–35 trillion economy by 2047. “We are looking for a USD 30-35 trillion economy by 2047 to power India into the league of developed nations. And that’s how we’ll bring prosperity to all people,” he said.“Gone are the days that one could live in economic isolation. One has to engage with the rest of the world. One has to expand international trading arrangements. You have to secure markets.”he added.
