New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday met UK Foreign Secretary David Lammy and welcomed his country's desire to conclude a mutually beneficial free trade agreement (FTA). Modi said in a post on X, "A pleasure to meet UK FS David Lammy. Appreciate the priority accorded by PM Keir Starmer to broaden and deepen the Comprehensive Strategic Partnership." He added, "Remain committed to elevating the ties. Welcome the bilateral Technology Security Initiative and the desire to conclude a mutually beneficial FTA."
Earlier today, the top UK official also met External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar in the national capital.
Why is Lammy's visit crucial?
Lammy arrived in Delhi earlier this morning on the first high-level visit by the newly-elected Labour government in the United Kingdom. He is on a two-day tour to highlight the importance of a new partnership between the UK and India that focuses on economic, domestic and global security.
During his visit, Lammy will hold meetings with Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal and also meet with climate and business leaders to unlock the full potential of the UK-India partnership according to a statement from the British High Commission. Lammy will push for a reset of the UK-India partnership, including by reinforcing the UK's commitment to securing a Free Trade Agreement (FTA) for greater growth in both countries, the High Commission statement read. Lammy will underscore the importance of the 'Living Bridge' between the UK and India, the High Commission said.
David Lammy meeting with NSA Ajit Doval
Earlier today, the UK official also met with National Security Advisor Ajit Doval in New Delhi. According to the statement released by the ministry, both sides welcomed the launch of the UK-India Technology Security Initiative (TSI), spearheaded and agreed upon by the National Security Advisors (NSAs) of both countries to expand collaboration in Critical and Emerging Technologies (CET) across priority sectors including Telecoms, Critical Minerals, Semiconductors, Artificial Intelligence, Quantum, Biotech and Advanced Materials.
"The collaboration under TSI will include Government, Private Sector, Academia and R&D institutions. TSI builds upon the 2030 road map between the two countries and is a crucial step to strengthen the collaboration in the Science and Technology domain," read the statement. It underscored that the TSI would be helpful for improving supply chain resilience and also for developing economically feasible and environmentally sustainable extraction technologies for identified critical minerals.
Besides, the TSI framework will also boost research, trade and investment flows between the UK and India in the domains of Semiconductors, artificial intelligence and Quantum. "The fields of genomics, precision medicine, cell and gene therapy, biotherapeutics, bio-manufacturing, bio-electronics, etc. will get an impetus. UK and India will collaborate in the field of next-generation telecommunication technologies and telecom providers, Start-ups and businesses will explore commercial opportunities in telecoms infrastructure," it added
(With inputs from agencies)
