India’s PM Modi gets Swiss pledge on tackling tax dodgers

Switzerland has promised to work with Indian authorities to tackle tax dodgers who stash money in Swiss bank accounts to avoid Indian taxes. After talks in Geneva with Swiss President Johann Schneider-Ammann and round-table discussions with Swiss businessmen, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said the two countries had agreed to make combating tax evasion and “black money” a shared priority.

Modi promised in his 2014 election campaign to recover billions of dollars sent to tax havens abroad to avoid income tax, now about 30 percent in India. Schneider-Ammann said no figure had been put on the amount of “black money” to be recovered.

Modi said Switzerland had also agreed to support its bid for membership of the Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG), which it applied to join last month, having won a waiver in 2008 that accorded it the right to trade in commercial nuclear technology.

New Delhi’s bid for full membership of the 48-nation club, if granted, would tip the balance of power in South Asia against its arch-rival Pakistan, whose own application has been backed by China despite questions over its proliferation record.

Modi tacked on Switzerland and Mexico as extra stops on a five-country tour to seek their support on joining the NSG. He left Switzerland for Washington, where U.S. President Barack Obama is expected to offer his backing also.

 


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