Delhi: UK PM Boris Johnson to meet PM Modi today
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson will meet PM Narendra Modi in New Delhi on Friday and discuss the bilateral strategic defense, diplomatic, and economic partnerships. The talks are aimed at forging close partnerships and strengthening security cooperation in the Indo-Pacific region, news agency ANI reported. Johnson reached Delhi from Gujarat on Thursday night and was received by Union Minister Rajeev Chandrasekhar. Here's more.
- Ahead of the meeting with PM Modi, Johnson reportedly on Thursday indicated he was ready to offer more visas to India in return for a free trade agreement (FTA) to boost bilateral trade.
- "I have always been in favor of talented people coming to this country (UK). We are short to the tune of...thousands of people in our economy," Reuters quoted Johnson as saying.
The British High Commission (BHC) on Thursday had said that Johnson will use his two-day India visit to boost "our collaboration with one of the world's fastest-growing economies, slashing trade barriers." It added, "UK and Indian businesses will confirm more than £1 billion in new investments and export deals...in areas from software engineering to health, creating almost 11,000 jobs across the UK."
The new investment deals announced on Thursday included a new Switch Mobility electric bus R&D center in the UK and its Asia-Pacific Headquarters in Chennai, creating over 1,000 jobs in the UK and India. Indian manufacturer Bharat Forge and electric truck maker Tevva Motors have also announced investments to expand to a new region in the UK and generate 500 jobs, the BHC said.
The BHC also said the investment agenda included Indian software company Mastek investing £79M to generate 1,600 jobs over three years across the UK. Mumbai-based business consultancy FirstSource agreed to open new offices in South Wales, the Midlands, and cities in the UK's North-East and North-West. Meanwhile, Hertfordshire-based Smith & Nephew also signed a new export deal to sell robotic surgical systems in India.
On Thursday a historic deal between London-based OneWeb and ISRO's commercial arm, NewSpace India, for satellite launches was also inked. Moreover, Johnson will also use his India visit to take forward the FTA negotiations launched earlier this year. Britain is hopeful that the free trade deal could double its exports to India and boost trade by £28 billion per year by 2035.
