News Highlight
The bilateral relations between India and the UK may be strengthened as Rishi Sunak was installed as Britain’s first Indian-origin Prime Minister on Tuesday.
Key Takeaway
- Sunak was elected the Conservative Party leader on Monday.
- Sunak’s historic milestone as the country’s first nonwhite Prime Minister is being widely celebrated as a sign of the diversity of modern-day Britain.
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 United Kingdom 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 UK 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 UK. 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 meets 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