New Delhi [India], October 14 : India is open to business engagements with countries across the world, including China, provided the terms are fair and the geopolitical situation remains stable, Union Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal said, signalling scope for renewed economic engagement with Beijing.
Speaking at the Bloomberg New Economy Forum, “We are open to all countries around the world as long as we get a fair deal, as long as we are ensured continuity in the engagement, and as long as the geopolitical situation does not deteriorate,” Goyal said during a panel discussion on supply-chain resilience and technology partnerships.
“We are working to develop the relation with China once again, but the last word has not yet been scripted on this journey,” he added.
Goyal also said India’s relationship with the United States remained strong and was expected to improve further, describing it as consequential for both countries and the wider world. He said the partnership extended beyond trade, with the US being India’s largest trading partner, to defence, technology, critical minerals and people-to-people ties.
“I think the U.S. and India have a very, very consequential relationship, and it's only going to get better,” he said, adding that the ties were supported by economic, political and security imperatives and would remain strong despite changes in political thinking in either country.
Goyal further highlighted that countries were increasingly seeking to develop their own technologies and equipment supply chains, making cooperation among trusted partners important. He said it might be difficult for individual countries to replicate capabilities concentrated in a few economies without working together.
“It may not be possible that we can replicate what one or two countries have been able to do at really big scale unless we join hands, unless we work together,” he said.
The minister said India was not pursuing isolation but wanted to balance self-sufficiency in critical sectors with efficiency through trusted international partnerships. He said countries needed to identify areas where dependence on external suppliers could make their production vulnerable to policy changes or geopolitical developments.
Singapore Deputy Prime Minister and Trade and Industry Minister Gan Kim Yong said Singapore was working with India to strengthen the semiconductor industry and train workers to support its growth. He said cooperation remained important even as global economic and technology links faced fragmentation.
During the panel discussion, Canadian Minister of International Trade Maninder Sidhu said Canada was accelerating efforts to diversify its trading partners and was negotiating a trade agreement with India. He said Canada’s energy resources could help meet India’s growing requirements, with India expected to need 70 per cent more energy by 2035.
The discussion highlighted the growing emphasis on trusted partnerships, diversified supply chains and cooperation in technology and critical resources as countries respond to changing geopolitical and trade conditions.