<p>German Chancellor Angela Merkel said on Saturday there was a need for a fresh attempt to restart talks on finalising a free trade agreement (FTA) between India and the European Union.</p>.<p>Merkel who is in India along with several cabinet colleagues and a business delegation, began talks with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi on trade, investment, regional security and climate change.</p>.<p>A free trade pact with India has been a long-pending demand from Germany which is India's largest trading partner in Europe. The pact has been in discussion for years.</p>.<p>"We need a new attempt for an EU-Indian FTA. We were already close once," Merkel said in New Delhi, adding that she held an intensive discussion about the FTA with Modi.</p>.<p>"With the new EU-commission there will be a new attempt," she said.</p>.<p>With more than 1,700 German companies operating in India, a free trade pact could help minimise the uncertainty experienced by German investors after an investment protection agreement between the two countries ended in 2016.</p>.<p>While addressing an audience at the Indo-German Chambers of Commerce, Merkel said she had an open discussion with Modi about problems faced by German companies and difficulties reported by small and medium enterprises to find a way around the "bureaucracy labyrinth".</p>.<p>In recent months German firms have raised a few other concerns, including a slowdown in India's auto sector, lack of stable policymaking and ad-hoc decisions which they say have affected buyer sentiment and created uncertainty among carmakers.</p>.<p>Merkel said Germany will spend one billion euros ($1.12 billion) in the next five years on green urban mobility projects conceived under the new German-Indian partnership.</p>.<p>German funds will be used to finance several environment-friendly projects such as the introduction of electric buses to replace diesel ones used for public transport in urban centres.</p>.<p>Fresh funds pledged by Germany come at a time when pollution made the air so toxic in India's capital New Delhi that officials were forced to declare a public health emergency.</p>.<p>Photos of Merkel's o</p>
<p>German Chancellor Angela Merkel said on Saturday there was a need for a fresh attempt to restart talks on finalising a free trade agreement (FTA) between India and the European Union.</p>.<p>Merkel who is in India along with several cabinet colleagues and a business delegation, began talks with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi on trade, investment, regional security and climate change.</p>.<p>A free trade pact with India has been a long-pending demand from Germany which is India's largest trading partner in Europe. The pact has been in discussion for years.</p>.<p>"We need a new attempt for an EU-Indian FTA. We were already close once," Merkel said in New Delhi, adding that she held an intensive discussion about the FTA with Modi.</p>.<p>"With the new EU-commission there will be a new attempt," she said.</p>.<p>With more than 1,700 German companies operating in India, a free trade pact could help minimise the uncertainty experienced by German investors after an investment protection agreement between the two countries ended in 2016.</p>.<p>While addressing an audience at the Indo-German Chambers of Commerce, Merkel said she had an open discussion with Modi about problems faced by German companies and difficulties reported by small and medium enterprises to find a way around the "bureaucracy labyrinth".</p>.<p>In recent months German firms have raised a few other concerns, including a slowdown in India's auto sector, lack of stable policymaking and ad-hoc decisions which they say have affected buyer sentiment and created uncertainty among carmakers.</p>.<p>Merkel said Germany will spend one billion euros ($1.12 billion) in the next five years on green urban mobility projects conceived under the new German-Indian partnership.</p>.<p>German funds will be used to finance several environment-friendly projects such as the introduction of electric buses to replace diesel ones used for public transport in urban centres.</p>.<p>Fresh funds pledged by Germany come at a time when pollution made the air so toxic in India's capital New Delhi that officials were forced to declare a public health emergency.</p>.<p>Photos of Merkel's o</p>