Chilean Foreign Minister Alberto Van Klaveren Visits India to Strengthen Ties
New Delhi, August 28: Chilean Foreign Minister Alberto Van Klaveren has described India as a ‘very important partner’ for Chile. During his two-day visit to India, he participated in the second India-Chile Joint Commission Meeting with India’s External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar.
Strengthening Bilateral Relations
Chile is a key partner for India in Latin America. Klaveren’s visit aims to review the progress in bilateral relations and explore new avenues for cooperation. He expressed admiration for India’s growth, culture, and civilization, and emphasized the potential to strengthen economic and political ties.
Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA)
Klaveren highlighted the goal of advancing towards a Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) with India. He mentioned that necessary studies and terms of reference have been analyzed, and he is confident about the success of future negotiations.
Trade and Economic Cooperation
Chile’s trade in 2023 is estimated at USD 2,847 billion. In 2022, India ranked 16th as a destination for Chile’s non-copper and non-lithium exports, amounting to USD 560 million, with 30% related to foods. Chile was the first nation to have a Partial Scope Agreement (PSA) with India, which was extended in 2017 to include tariff preferences for 1,110 Chilean products.
Recent Diplomatic Engagements
Recent diplomatic engagements include visits by Chile’s Ambassador to India, Juan Angula, and Police Attache Rafael Andres Tellez Benucci to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) headquarters in May 2023. They discussed cooperation in combating technology-enabled crimes, drug trafficking, and transnational crimes.
Agricultural Cooperation
On Tuesday, Minister of State for Agriculture and Farmers’ Welfare, Ramnath Thakur, met with Chile’s Minister for Agriculture, Esteban Valenzuela, to discuss agricultural challenges and opportunities to boost trade. They agreed to work on resolving market access issues for Indian mangoes and pomegranates and explored expanding trade in various agricultural products.
Valenzuela expressed interest in importing Indian bananas and basmati rice, while Thakur emphasized expanding trade in roses, garlic, kidney beans, and other items. Both sides discussed implementing MoUs on agricultural cooperation and establishing a task force to address market access and sanitary concerns.
Doubts Revealed
Chilean Foreign Minister -: The Foreign Minister is a government official in charge of a country’s foreign affairs, which means they handle relationships with other countries. In this case, it’s the Foreign Minister of Chile, a country in South America.
Alberto Van Klaveren -: Alberto Van Klaveren is the name of the person who is the Foreign Minister of Chile. He is visiting India to talk about how the two countries can work together better.
bilateral ties -: Bilateral ties refer to the relationship between two countries. In this context, it means the relationship between India and Chile.
India-Chile Joint Commission Meeting -: This is a meeting where representatives from India and Chile come together to discuss and plan how they can cooperate and work together on various issues.
External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar -: S Jaishankar is the person in charge of India’s foreign affairs. He works on India’s relationships with other countries, just like the Foreign Minister of Chile.
Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) -: CEPA is a type of agreement between countries to make it easier to trade goods and services, invest, and cooperate in other economic areas. It helps both countries’ economies grow.
diplomatic engagements -: Diplomatic engagements are meetings and discussions between representatives of different countries to improve their relationships and solve any issues they might have.
agricultural cooperation -: Agricultural cooperation means working together on farming and food production. This can include sharing technology, knowledge, and resources to improve farming in both countries.
