News Highlight
“On the separate issue of migration and returns, India and the UK have made huge progress on that issue, particularly after the agreement made between the Prime Ministers of both.
Key Takeaway
- Finalising a trade deal between India and the UK.
India and Britain’s relations
- Political relations:
- Strong ties of history and culture bind India and Britain. India’s multifaceted bilateral relationship with Britain intensified with its upgradation to a Strategic Partnership in 2004.
- Bilateral trade:
- The India-UK economic relations received a vibrant upward direction after establishing the Joint Economic and Trade Committee (JETCO) in 2005 to tackle trade and investment barriers on both sides and promote business links.
- India’s trade in goods and services with the UK increased to $31.34 billion in 2022 from $19.51 billion in 2015.
- Foreign Direct Investment (FDI):
- India has emerged as the third largest source of foreign direct investment (FDI) for the United Kingdom (UK), after the United States (US) and France.
- Free Trade Talks:
- In 2022, India and the United Kingdom concluded the fifth round of talks for an India-UK Free Trade Agreement (FTA).
- The FTA is important for both countries as it would boost and create a robust framework for overall trade and investment between the two countries.
- Strategic relations:
- The P5 refers to the UN Security Council’s (UNSC) five permanent members (the P5), namely China, France, Russia, the United Kingdom, and the United States.
- The UK is an essential P5 partner of India, where India can influence the UNSC’s decision, and the UK supports the permanent membership demand of India in the UNSC.
- Civil Nuclear Cooperation:
- The India-Britain Civil Nuclear Cooperation Agreement of 2010 is essential for India’s energy security.
- Security relations:
- One of India’s significant defence purchases from Britain is HMS Hercules, renamed INS Vikrant in 1961.
- India-Britain joint exercises:
- Ajeya Warrior-Army
- Konkan-Navy
- Indradhanush-Air Force
- The environment and technology-based relations:
- India and the UK initiated a joint UK-India Fund, a Green Growth Equity Fund. It aims to leverage private sector investment from Britain to invest in green infrastructure projects in India.
- The Newton-Bhabha Fund, established in 2014, brings the best researchers and innovators from the UK and India to tackle the most significant global challenges.
- Cultural relations:
- India and the United Kingdom signed a Memorandum of Understanding on Cultural Cooperation.
- The Nehru Centre (TNC), established in 1992 in London is the cultural outreach of the High Commission of India in the United Kingdom. The Centre organises a wide range of cultural functions at its premises.
- Indian community:
- British Indians form the largest ethnonational group in Britain, with a population of around 6.6% of the population. There are more than ten Indian-origin MPs in the new UK Parliament.
- Common Platforms Shared by Both Countries:
- Commonwealth of Nations, the World Trade Organisation and the Asian Development Bank, G20.
- Health:
- Collaboration in the health sector is essential to the India-UK Strategic Partnership.
- The Joint Working Group on Health and Life Sciences meet regularly to prioritise and organise bilateral health cooperation.
- Both countries are collaborating in the areas of antimicrobial resistance (AMR), zoonotic research, non-communicable diseases, digital health, and Ayurveda.
Content Source: The Hindu