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External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar met newly-appointed UK Foreign Secretary, David Cameron and discussed the “situation in West Asia, the Ukraine conflict and the Indo-Pacific” on Monday. Jaishankar, who arrived in the UK over the weekend for a five-day visit, met Cameron who was British PM from 2010-2016, in what was the newly-minted Foreign Secretary’s first bilateral meeting. In fact, 24 hours before that cabinet reshuffle took place, he had met British Foreign Secretary James Cleverly at the Indian High Commissioner’s residence. And, a day later, after the Cabinet rejig, he met Cleverly again — this time, in his new role as British Home Secretary.
Jaishankar tweeted about the two meetings with Cleverly, “Met UK Foreign Secretary James Cleverly at High Commissioner’s reception last evening. Met UK Home Secretary James Cleverly this evening. Discussed the importance of mobility, skills and talent in the development of our bilateral cooperation. Exchanged views on addressing shared concerns on extremism, economic offenses, trafficking and security. Appreciate @JamesCleverly’s continued support for our strategic partnership.”
And, after meeting Cameron, he tweeted, “A pleasure to meet UK Foreign Secretary @David_Cameron this afternoon on his first day in office. Congratulated him on his appointment. Held a detailed discussion on realizing the full potential of our strategic partnership. Also exchanged views on the situation in West Asia, the Ukraine conflict and the Indo-Pacific. Look forward to working with him closely.”
A British Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office spokesperson said, “For his first bilateral meeting as Foreign Secretary, David Cameron welcomed Indian External Affairs Minister Dr S Jaishankar in London today.”
“They discussed shared global challenges, including the concerning situation in Israel and Gaza and Russia’s illegal war in Ukraine. In the meeting they also covered the importance of the Indo-Pacific region to global growth and prosperity,” the spokesperson said.
“They also reflected on the strength of the UK-India relationship – including meeting the ambition of the UK-India 2030 Roadmap. The Foreign Secretary and Dr Jaishankar also discussed progressing a free trade agreement and partnerships on defence, science and technology,” the spokesperson said.
Jaishankar, who also addressed the Indian diaspora, said that the free trade agreement (FTA) is very much the focus of the India-UK relationship today and India is hopeful of finding a “landing point” in the negotiations that works for both sides.
“Today to realise the Agenda 2030, we are focusing on what is officially called an Enhanced Trade Partnership, in common terms it’s called an FTA or free trade agreement. And that is today very much the focus of what the Indian and British systems are negotiating, and we hope that we will find a landing point that works for both of us,” Jaishankar said.
India and the UK have been negotiating an FTA since January last year. The talks have undergone 13 rounds of negotiations, with officials hopeful of clinching a deal ahead of general elections in both countries in 2024.
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