Indian minister pushes for free trade deal with EU

BERLIN (AP) — India's foreign minister is urging European governments to move ahead with a free trade and investment deal that has been in negotiations with his country for six years.

Speaking after meeting Wednesday with German Foreign Minister Guido Westerwelle, Salman Khurshid told reporters that he hoped the free trade agreement could be concluded "as quickly as possible."

He says what's needed now is political will because "technocrats have worked on it enough."

Officials had hoped to conclude the agreement by last year but it has been hung up over a wide range of issues, including EU demands for intellectual property protections and investor guarantees, and import duties on automobiles. The EU is India's largest trade partner.

Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh meets with Chancellor Angela Merkel on Thursday in Berlin.