Piyush Goyal told the Financial Times that he expected the countries to conclude the trade deal “within the next few months” and that 11 of the 26 chapters of the proposed pact were already “dusted and ready”. Both Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his British counterpart Boris Johnson have promoted trade diplomacy as part of their economic agenda. India is pursuing trade deals with the EU and Canada after deals with the United Arab Emirates and Australia, while Downing Street sees the deal with New Delhi as central to its post-Brexit economic strategy. The controversial deal is expected to improve market access for products such as British whiskey and Indian textiles. But it also touches on politically sensitive areas, including the potential opening of the UK to more students and skilled workers from India. Johnson said on a visit to New Delhi in April that he hoped the deal would be completed by the Hindu festival of Diwali in late October, a deadline approved by Goyal. “Whenever you have a free trade agreement, there’s always a lot of give and take,” Goyal said, declining to discuss pending disputes between the sides. “The challenges are there. But there are no challenges that cannot be overcome.” Goyal brushed aside criticism of New Delhi’s growing imports of Russian oil at a time when Western countries are cutting energy trade with Moscow because of its war with Ukraine. “We had an old relationship with Russia which continues as it has,” he said. “There is no change in our position” Since the start of the conflict in Ukraine, Russia has become one of India’s biggest suppliers dependent on oil imports as its refiners enjoy steep discounts on Urals crude. “Europe uses gas from Russia,” Goyal added. “Each country must protect its national interests.” India’s growing importance as a consumer market and as a geopolitical counterweight to China has reduced criticism of the Modi government’s ties to Russia from the UK and others. India’s economy is also being hit by higher food and oil prices, with the country this week reporting a record monthly trade deficit of $26 billion for June.

India in May curbed wheat exports amid domestic food security concerns after a severe heat wave damaged its crops, prompting alarm that it would further limit already strained global supplies. But Goyal defended the move, arguing that it allowed the government to provide grain to others who needed it most, while curbing private speculation. “We want to make sure that the countries that really deserve . . . get our wheat at affordable prices,” he said. Goyal said he aimed to help India become a $30 trillion economy within 30 years, from about $3 trillion now. “People are recognizing that there is no other country in the world that offers a market like India, which offers a billion people who aspire for a better quality of life,” Goyal said. “A market that will probably grow 10 times over the next 30 years, compared to the developed world which will probably be two or three times 30 years from now.”