On Friday, Indian External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar convened a virtual meeting with his Chilean counterpart Allamand Zavala for the first Joint Commission Meeting (JCM) to discuss expanding bilateral cooperation between India and Chile. The JCM, which was held to conduct a complete review of the two countries’ bilateral relations, is the first such formal dialogue introduced between the foreign ministers of the two sides.
Thank FM @allamand for co-chairing the first session of India-Chile Joint Commission Meeting. Reviewed our cooperation in trade, investment, defence, space, agriculture, pharmaceutical, mining and education. pic.twitter.com/pCH62X6ud5
— Dr. S. Jaishankar (@DrSJaishankar) October 16, 2020
Several crucial issues were touched upon by the leaders during Friday’s meeting. A statement released by the Ministry of External Affairs said, “They agreed to add momentum to the relations of the two countries in the fields of trade and commerce, agriculture, health and social security, defence, space, science and technology, energy, mining, culture and education, disaster management and cooperation in Antarctica amongst others.” The two sides also discussed the setting up of a Joint Business Council to smoothen their business and trade partnership. Consequently, Zavala proposed the introduction of multiple entry and long-term visas for businessmen from India.
As a result of the meeting, Chile announced its decision to further prioritise India in its foreign policy. The two sides also discussed the importance of multilateralism for several regional and international issues and reiterated their commitment to strengthen international organisations. Further, Jaishankar highlighted India’s “Atmanirbhar Bharat” vision, aimed at bolstering self-reliance to revive India’s economy, inviting Chile to enjoy the benefits of the economic opportunities that the campaign has brought in.
In the context of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, India committed to providing Chile with necessary generic medicines. Simultaneously, India also discussed setting up an e-health initiative with the Netherlands to expand the use of technology in India’s healthcare sector.
It is worth noting that Chile was the first country to extend its support to India and South Africa’s proposal at the World Trade Organisation (WTO) to waive certain patent provisions to improve the Global South’s access to medical and pharmaceutical products to contain the pandemic.
Additionally, Jaishankar and Zavala spoke of expanding the Preferential Trade Agreement between the two sides, which was first established in 2006 and expanded in 2016 to include more products. As of today, Chile is India’s fifth-largest trade partner in the Latin American and Caribbean region. In 2018-2019, India’s bilateral trade with Chile amounted to $2.22 billion. Hence the two sides signed a Double Taxation Avoidance Agreement in March 2020 and are working towards a Bilateral Investment Protection Treaty.
Boosting relations with Chile, a member of the Pacific Alliance, is particularly crucial for India as it seeks to expand its influence in the Indo-Pacific to counter Chinese aggression in the region.