Jaishankar welcomes USTR Katherine Tai's positive stance on IPR issues

External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar appreciated Tai's stance on issues related to intellectual property rights of Covid-19 vaccines and support for efficient and robust supply chains

External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on Thursday welcomed the positive stance of US Trade Representative Katherine Tai on issues related to intellectual property rights of COVID-19 vaccines and her support for efficient and robust supply chains.

Jaishankar, 66, on Thursday had a meeting with Tai to discuss a wide range of bilateral trade issues. The minister described it as good discussions. "Welcomed her positive stance on IPR issues & support for efficient and robust supply chains," he said in a tweet after the meeting.

Early this month, Tai, after consultations with various stakeholders, had announced support to the move of India and South Africa to waive certain IP aspects of COVID-19 vaccines at the World Trade Organization (WTO). This step is likely to help in a big way in the fight against the pandemic.

"Our trade, technology and business cooperation are at the core of our strategic partnership. Enhancing them is vital to post-Covid economic recovery," Jaishankar said in a tweet.

According to the latest quarterly official data, India is the top ninth trade partner of the United States in goods and services. The total bilateral trade between India and the US from January to March this year was USD 24.8 billion. The list is topped by America's two neighbours: Mexico (USD 153.9 billion) and Canada (USD 151.1 billion), followed by China (USD 148.2 billion), Japan (USD 49.4 billion) and Germany (USD 46.7 billion).

According to the Department of Commerce, US exports of goods and services to India supported an estimated 1,98,000 jobs in 2015 (according to latest available data) -- 82,000 supported by goods exports and 1,16,000 supported by services exports.