In the Ministerial Conference (MC13) of the World Trade Organization (WTO), India will raise the issue of imposing carbon tax in the name of Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM) on behalf of the European Union (EU).

13th WTO Ministerial Conference is scheduled in Abu Dhabi:

The 13th WTO Ministerial Conference (MC13) is set to occur from February 26th to 29th, 2024, in Abu Dhabi.
Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal said in a conversation related to the Raisina Dialogue programme on 23 February 2024 that CBAM is a matter of concern for us. Besides raising this issue at the WTO platform, India will also hold talks with the EU at bilateral level.

EU will impose carbon tax from 2026:

The EU has decided to impose a carbon tax from the year 2026. Due to this, carbon tax will have to be paid on many items like steel, cement, aluminum exported from India. The cost of these items is expected to rise.
Goyal told entrepreneurs affected by the carbon tax that the government is aware of their challenges. The government wants us to convert this challenge into an opportunity.

Developing countries will be affected:

Not only India but all developing countries will also be affected by CBAM because currently in these countries only fossil fuels are mainly used for industrial production. Their cost will also increase with the use of green fuel.

India has pending free trade agreements with many countries:

On this issue, Goyal also said that India does not want to conclude any free trade agreement (FTA) in a hurry because the effect of FTA lasts for years. The government will execute any FTA only by keeping the national interest in mind. These days, FTA talks are going on with many countries like Britain, EU, Oman.
The Union Minister said that in WTO's MC13 next week, some countries are also trying to bring those issues for discussion on the WTO platform. Issues that have nothing to do with world trade.
India will try to discuss any issue on this platform keeping in mind the principles of WTO. Union Minister Goyal was referring to the proposed discussion regarding investment agreement by a group of 130 countries under the leadership of China. India is not included in this group formed on investment issues.
In the Ministerial Conference (MC13) of the World Trade Organization (WTO), India will raise the issue of imposing carbon tax in the name of Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM) on behalf of the European Union (EU).