'India, Eurasian Economic Union finalizing broad contours for proposed FTA'

India and the five-nation Eurasian Economic Union bloc are working to finalise broad contours and their terms of reference on a proposed free trade agreement, an official said.

The five members of the Eurasian Economic Union (EEU) are Armenia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and Russia.

Additional Secretary in the Department of Commerce Anant Swarup said that on the EEU proposed free trade agreement (FTA), chief negotiators of both sides have already met and broad contours are being finalised.

"Scope and the ToRs (terms of reference) of the proposed free trade agreement are under stakeholder consultation internally in India and same with Russia and soon it will be exchanged so that the next steps can take place," he told reporters here.

On the timeline for both sides to formally launch negotiations for the pact, he said that unless there is an understanding on the ToR, the launch date is premature to be decided.

In such agreements, two or more trading partners either eliminate or