Page 2 - India-uk Ties

India, UK discuss deeper military ties, advancing defence capability

According to the Ministry of Defence, the discussions focused on enhancing defence industry collaboration and boosting the Make in India initiative

UK court rejects India's appeal for extradition of Sanjay Bhandari

The High Court in London on Tuesday refused the government of India's application seeking permission to appeal in Britain's Supreme Court against the discharge of Sanjay Bhandari, the defence sector consultant wanted in Delhi to face charges of alleged tax evasion and money laundering. Lord Justice Timothy Holroyde handed down the judgment at a brief pronouncement hearing at the Royal Courts of Justice in response to the Indian government's application filed last month. It followed Holroyde and Justice Karen Steyn's February 28 High Court judgment granting the 62-year-old businessman's appeal against being extradited on human rights grounds. The court received an application from the government of India seeking certification of points of law of general importance and grant leave to appeal to the Supreme Court, said Justice Holroyde. Having considered the written submissions, the court is satisfied that no oral hearing is necessary, and no further submissions required. The two point

Govt seeks to appeal Sanjay Bhandari extradition discharge ruling

The Indian government as respondent in Sanjay Bhandari extradition case has sought permission from the London High Court to appeal against the discharge of the defence sector consultant wanted in Delhi to face charges of alleged tax evasion and money laundering. According to government officials familiar with the case, the first in a two-part process was initiated this week, which involves getting the high court's certification of points of law of general public importance. If this stage is successful, the appeal can proceed to the Supreme Court for argument. A UK court official confirmed the Indian government had applied to certify two points of law of general importance and grant leave to appeal to the Supreme Court. It follows Lord Justice Timothy Holroyde and Justice Karen Steyn's February 28 high court judgment granting the 62-year-old businessman's appeal on human rights grounds. The court had ordered his discharge from then UK home secretary Suella Braverman's extradition o

Sign of bigger things to come: Jaishankar on new consulate in Manchester

External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on Saturday inaugurated a new Consulate General of India in Manchester, which he said was symbolic of the importance of the growing diaspora in the region and a sign of things to come, including an India-UK Free Trade Agreement (FTA). The external affairs minister (EAM) said it was apt that Vishakha Yaduvanshi takes over her role as India's newest Consul General on International Women's Day, reflective of the strides the government has made in putting women's issues at the centre of policy. He followed up the official opening of the consulate building in Stockport, Greater Manchester, with a celebratory diaspora reception at the Old Trafford stadium, where he interacted with members of the Lancashire Cricket Club's women's team members before they leave for Bengaluru for a pre-season tour next week. My first visit to Manchester here today, in a formal way, is an acknowledgement of how much this relationship has matured in the last four decades,

MEA issues demarche to UK charge d'affaires over Jaishankar security breach

India on Thursday served a demarche to the British charge d'affaires lodging a strong protest over a breach in security for External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar in London as a pro-Khalistani protester attempted to break barricades and tried to stop his motorcade while some others were shouting anti-India slogans. In a firm reaction, New Delhi condemned the incident and said it expects the host government to fully live up to their diplomatic obligations in such case. It also deplored the "misuse of democratic freedoms" by the "small group of separatist" elements. People familiar with the matter said the charge d'affaires at the British High Commission was called to the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) and was served a demarche. The incident happened as Jaishankar was leaving the Chatham House after concluding an interactive session at the institute, home to Royal Institute of International Affairs, on Wednesday evening. The external affairs minister was in London as in the first

India, UK renew five-year partnership to strengthen health cooperation

The MoU focuses on joint efforts to address global health challenges, including antimicrobial resistance, non-communicable diseases, digital health innovations, and pharmaceutical advancements

Business activity between India, UK flourishes in 2024, shows HSBC data

Business activity between the UK and India has flourished in 2024 as the value of payments received by clients in Britain from India rose by 121 per cent, according to the latest data released by HSBC UK. The multinational bank, which highlighted the figures based on its two-way support for businesses within the India-UK corridor this week, said its data on payments and client referrals showed year-on-year growth. In the nine months to October 2024, the value of payments made by HSBC UK business clients to India reportedly rose by 32 per cent and the bank received 36 per cent more new business client referrals from HSBC India year-on-year. Our data shows that business between the UK and India is not only strong, it's getting even stronger, and the opportunities for expanding businesses in India are huge, said Cora McLaren, Head of International Subsidiary Banking at HSBC UK. India's population is not only a vast number of potential customers, within it there is a growing middle cla

Beyond the missed deadlines, India-UK FTA talks at a tricky turning point

India and the UK are set to relaunch free trade agreement talks next month under Keir Starmer's Labour Party, facing critical challenges including unresolved issues and shifting political priorities

Higher exports and migration marked post-Covid UK ties with India

India is among the largest sources of investments into UK

IGF to spotlight UK-India ties as bridge between polls in both countries

The annual India Global Forum (IGF) in London is set to spotlight UK-India strategic ties bridged between general elections in both countries next month, with a line up of senior ministers, entrepreneurs and analysts weighing up the future trajectory of bilateral ties under newly elected governments. IGF London, confirmed this week to be held between June 24 and 28, will cover the full spectrum of the partnership including the course of the free trade agreement (FTA) negotiations. The India-UK FTA talks began in January 2022 and are now stalled in the fourteenth round of talks as both countries stepped into their general election cycles this year. Regardless of which governments come to power, a series of opportunities, and certainly challenges, await them; that's why IGF London 2024 is set to be a crucial event in the diary, serving as a major economic and geopolitical stocktake, offering vital insights and informing the strategic direction for any new administration, said Manoj ...

Good market access offered on both sides, says UK on India FTA talks

There has been good market access offered on both sides but not enough to secure a free trade agreement (FTA), the UK government has said as Indian negotiators are in London this week to continue discussions with their British counterparts. During a debate in the House of Lords this week, UK Foreign Secretary David Cameron was addressing questions from British peers on the current state of freedom of religion or belief in India. The recent restructuring of the BBC to create a new Indian-owned entity in order to comply with the country's foreign direct investment (FDI) rules was flagged by Liberal Democrat peer Lord Jeremy Purvis, who questioned the level of market access being offered to India in the field of media, data and telecoms as part of the FTA negotiations. My understanding of where we are with the trade deal is that good market access has been offered on both sides, but not quite enough yet to secure a deal. It is important with such trade deals, as you only really get one

India, UK aim to sign free-trade agreement by July; legal vetting on

The timeline for finalising the FTA continues to remain crucial even after the conclusion of the Lok Sabha elections in early June, since the UK will get close to its general election thereafter

UK team heads back to London with Round 14 of FTA talks still open

Sources said the UK is "proud" of all that has been achieved so far and that the Prime Minister Rishi Sunak-led government remains committed to securing a "comprehensive and ambitious" FTA and BIT

India-UK FTA: Goyal, Badenoch meet to decide future course of action

The ministers are expected to hold bilateral talks on the sidelines of the World Trade Organization's four-day summit - the 13th Ministerial Conference -- in Abu Dhabi

India, UK relationship 'force for good': UK home secretary James Cleverly

Terming the UK-India relationship a "force for good", British Home Secretary James Cleverly has said that the two countries can work to prevent conflict from spilling over and engulfing other parts of the world. Speaking at India Global Forum's 6th annual UK-India Parliamentary Lunch at the House of Lords on Wednesday, Cleverly said that the intellectual horsepower of India is enormous and getting bigger. The intellectual horsepower of India is enormous and getting bigger. Whether it is dealing with potential future pandemics or dealing with non-communicable diseases or dealing with the opportunities and risks of Artificial Intelligence or financial services or sustainable agriculture, I struggle to think of any sector where coordination and cooperation between the UK and India will not be a force for good in the world, he said. Against the backdrop of major global conflicts, and following the first visit by an Indian Defence Minister (Rajnath Singh) to Britain in 22 years, Cleverly

England off-spinner Shoaib Bashir receives Indian visa, For Test series

England off-spinner Shoaib Bashir was on Wednesday granted visa to travel to India for the five-match Test series beginning from Thursday, announced the country's cricket board. Bashir will now travel to India from London this weekend to join his teammates and can be in contention for an England Test debut for the second match at Visakhapatnam. Shoaib Bashir has now received his visa, and is due to travel to join up with the team in India this weekend. We're glad the situation has now been resolved, said the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) in a statement. The delay in issuance of an Indian visa to rookie off-spinner Bashir had snowballed into a major controversy ahead of the first Test in Hyderabad. England skipper Ben Stokes called the turn of events "frustrating" while a British government spokesperson demanded "fair" treatment of the youngster. The 20-year-old Pakistan-origin cricketer, who plays for Somerset in the English county, had to head back home from the team's Ab

India-UK FTA: 'Majority of issues closed or at advanced stage of talks'

Majority of the issues in the proposed free trade agreement (FTA) between India and the UK are either finalised or at an advanced stage of talks, a government official said on Monday. Additional Secretary in the Department of Commerce L Satya Srinivas said that the 14th round of negotiations between the officials of the two countries is underway here. "The majority of the chapters are either closed or at an advanced stage of negotiation. Discussions are being held at the higher level as well as at the team level to iron out differences," he told reporters here. The talks for the pact began in January 2022. The current round of talks is expected to be the final one. Talks are also progressing on the proposed Bilateral Investment Treaty (BIT). There are 26 chapters in the agreement, which include goods, services, investments and intellectual property rights. Issues from both goods and services are pending for conclusion. The bilateral trade between India and the UK increased to US

Rajnath Singh, David Cameron praise momentum of India-UK partnership

Cameron reiterated the UK government's desire to collaborate with India in defence areas. The leaders held the meeting at the UK Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office

India-UK FTA talks: Trying to balance mobility, migration concerns

After a high-level UK delegation visited India to iron out the differences, currently, an Indian delegation is in London to advance discussions

India, UK seek to wrap up trade negotiations before busy election year

It's the 13th round of negotiations on a deal intended to expand a trading relationship that was worth more than $24 billion last year