New Delhi: India and the European Union (EU) on Friday have settled conclusively to speed up the discussion towards settling down the pact by Dec 2008.

At a combined press meeting with Portugese Prime Minister Jose Socrates, Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh said, “We are engaged in negotiations over a broad-based trade and investment agreement with the EU. I am hopeful that by the next summit it will be in place.”

“Both sides want to recognise that the agreement must be ambitious and more broad-based,” Mr. Socrates said.

Both the sides have been discussing a free trade contract since October 2006, and the meeting ensured them reviewing the progress of the discussion that aimed at covering up more than 90% of the two-sided trade.

Dr. Singh and Mr. Socrates have also signed up a MoU on the “Country Strategy Paper for India for 2007-2010” that will back up India’s efforts to attain the Millennium Development Goals and execute the India-EU Joint Action Plan through a total budget of 260 million Euros.

They also noted the intensification of the dialogue at various levels between India and the EU and also with individual EU member States.

Both of them emphasized the need to raise the people-to-people links among India and EU member States for business persons, experts and members of official delegations, as well as researchers, scientists, pupils, academicians and civil society representatives.

At the end of the meeting, a combined report confirmed their promise to a winning and appropriate ending of the Doha Development Agenda (DDA) multilateral trade negotiations.