Boris arrives today: Trade pact, Indo-Pacific, Ukraine on table
NEW DELHI: The Ukraine crisis will figure in UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s engagements during his two-day visit beginning Thursday though the focus will be on keeping the Indo-Pacific free from coercion and giving a push to negotiations for a bilateral free trade pact.
Johnson will begin his visit in Gujarat, where he will visit the Gujarat Biotechnology University and a factory operated by a British firm, and interact with top business leaders. He will then travel to New Delhi to hold talks with Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday.
While in Gujarat, Johnson will announce several commercial agreements and British and Indian businesses will confirm more than £1 billion in new investments and export deals in areas ranging from software engineering to health.
While the Russian invasion of Ukraine and its fallout on the world order is set to figure in Johnson’s interactions with Indian interlocutors, people familiar with the matter said the British Prime Minister will take the same line that foreign secretary Liz Truss took during her visit last month – that the UK is not in the business of lecturing or telling other countries what to do.
Johnson is expected to set out the British position on Ukraine and hear the Indian side so that there is better understanding of each other’s positions, the peolook ple said.
“There will be discussions on the longer term consequences of the Ukraine crisis. For its part, the UK supports the freedom of Ukraine,” one of the people said, adding Russia’s behaviour will decide the future course of action in the crisis.
The UK has been at the forefront in providing military aid and support to Ukraine, and Johnson recently visited Kyiv to meet President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. India has stopped short of publicly criticising Russia’s actions, though it has condemned the civilian killings in Bucha and repeatedly called for an end to hostilities and a return to dialogue. Ahead of his arrival, Johnson said he sees “vast possibilities” for what the two countries can achieve together in areas such as “next-generation 5G telecoms and AI to new partnerships in health research and renewable energy – the UK and India are leading the world”.
Johnson’s interactions will also focus on the centrality of India in the rise of Indo-Pacific, in keeping with the priority attached to India in the UK’s integrated review of defence, security and foreign policy in 2021, the people said.
“The Indo-Pacific is increasingly important for both sides, as is the need to keep it free from coercion and a place of opportunities that is free to all. There is also a need for democracies to become more resilient,” the person cited above said.
With defence and security one of the five pillars of the IndiaUK Roadmap 2030, there will also be discussions to build on the momentum created by the British carrier strike group’s visit to the Indian Ocean and joint exercises.
These discussions will also at the role the UK can play in helping India’s drive to indigenise defence manufacturing.
Describing Johnson’s visit as a “big deal”, the people said the talks between the two PMs will also serve as a “staging point” for the third round of negotiations on a free trade agreement to be hosted by India from April 25. While the two sides have been able to clear some issues and make progress on market access for items such as apples, medical devices and shrimps, the next round of talks will focus on some of the bigger issues, including trade in services, investments and market access for more sensitive items.
Following its exit from the European Union (EU), the UK is keen to expeditiously conclude a comprehensive trade pact with India. Britain is interested in signing a full-fledged FTA to save time instead of opting for a twostage deal – first, an interim or early harvest agreement, followed by a comprehensive pact, an official said.
India, however, is keen to finalise an early harvest deal before negotiating complex issues that will take time, he said. “This is a practical approach that will quickly show tangible results for both partners while other complex issues will be negotiated later,” he added.
The formal FTA negotiations started on January 13, when the two sides set a target of doubling trade in goods and services to $100 billion by 2030. Total twoway trade is currently worth $50 billion, including $35 billion in services and $15 billion in goods.