New Delhi

Trade between India and Latin America is expected to double to USD 100 billion by 2030 from the current USD 50 billion, Alberto Antonio Guani Amarilla, Ambassador of Uruguay to India and Coordinator of the Latin American and Caribbean Group (GRULAC), told ANI on Wednesday, highlighting the growing economic partnership between the two regions.

"It is very crucial to see that we already have a trade of USD 50 billion that will be USD 100 billion in the year 2030," Guani Amarilla told ANI in an exclusive interview on the sidelines of LAC FIRST: India-Latin America & Caribbean Business & Diplomatic Conference.

He said Latin America expects to remain a strong partner as India advances towards becoming a developed economy, adding that there is significant scope to expand cooperation across productive sectors.

Guani Amarilla said Latin America has increasingly emerged as an important partner for India and stressed the need to further deepen economic engagement between the two regions.

He welcomed India's decision to open an embassy in Uruguay next month, describing it as an important step in strengthening bilateral ties. Amarilla said Uruguay hopes External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar will attend the inauguration.

"We are now very much expecting the fact that India is going to open an embassy in Uruguay next month. We hope that Minister Jaishankar will be able to be the chief guest there," he said.

He also called for greater high-level engagement between the two countries, saying Uruguay would be pleased to host Prime Minister Narendra Modi and would also like to see the President of Uruguay visit India.

On trade, Amarilla said Uruguay is seeking an expansion of the existing India-Mercosur Preferential Trade Agreement, which currently covers around 450 products.

"We have a preferential agreement with Mercosur and that is something that has been covering 450 products. We want to take it to 3,000 and maybe that's the first stage to think on a wider possibility of having a free trade agreement," he said.

Amarilla identified minerals, agro-industries and pharmaceuticals as among the key sectors driving trade between India and Latin America and offering scope for further growth.

Commenting on global trade, Amarilla reiterated Uruguay's longstanding support for open markets and free trade.

"In the case of Uruguay, we have always been very much favourable to free trade. We have always promoted the possibility of having open markets and free exchange," he said.

Addressing energy markets, Amarilla said fluctuations in oil prices do not necessarily transform economies, citing Uruguay's own experience of shifting from dependence on imported oil to renewable energy.

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"What happened to Uruguay, for example, we were practically a net importer of oil and now we are a big producer of renewable energy," he said.

He said India and Uruguay should continue identifying areas of complementarity and collaboration to create mutually beneficial opportunities and expand engagement across sectors.