15th ASEAN-India Trade in Goods Agreement Joint Committee Meeting
The 15th meeting of the ASEAN-India Trade in Goods Agreement (AITIGA) Joint Committee was held from October 6-9, 2026, at the ASEAN Secretariat in Jakarta, Indonesia. The meeting was hosted by ASEAN and conducted in a hybrid format to review the progress and negotiations of the AITIGA. The event was co-chaired by Shri Nitin Kumar Yadav, Additional Secretary of the Department of Commerce, Ministry of Commerce and Industry, India, and Ms. Mastura Ahmad Mustafa, Deputy Secretary General (Trade) of Malaysia's Ministry of Investment, Trade & Industry.
Delegates from all ASEAN member states participated in the meeting, including representatives from Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Lao PDR, Malaysia, Myanmar, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and Viet Nam. Three of the eight Sub-Committees under the AITIGA Joint Committee held parallel hybrid meetings: the Sub-Committee on Legal and Institutional Issues (SC-LII), the Sub-Committee on National Treatment on Market Access (SC-NTMA), and the Sub-Committee on Rules of Origin (SC-ROO). These meetings served as a platform to deepen collaboration, enhance mutual understanding, and maintain constructive dialogue between ASEAN and India.
The Joint Committee issued directives for all Sub-Committees to expedite work on pending chapters under the AITIGA Review process, establishing firm time-bound deliverables and urging close coordination to ensure measurable progress. Both India and ASEAN reaffirmed their shared commitment to achieving a balanced, constructive, and forward-looking agreement. They emphasized their joint dedication to resolving outstanding policy issues, deepening economic integration, and modernizing the agreement into a mutually beneficial framework that strengthens bilateral trade relations.
The next meeting of the AITIGA Joint Committee is scheduled for January 2027 in India, which will also be conducted in hybrid mode. This meeting will review progress made by the Sub-Committees and provide further guidance for the timely conclusion of negotiations.