Getting the India-UK Free Trade Agreement signed by Diwali is a very ambitious goal for Prime Minister Narendra Modi, and his new British counterpart Liz Truss wants her administration to “match the pace and ambition” of the Indian leader According to UK Foreign Secretary James Cleverly. Cleverly added that the strong and deep bilateral relationship between India and the UK is both a “Huge plus” and a reason why, It is very understandable that there is a desire to establish a very wide-ranging, substantial free-trade agreement.
Diwali falls on October 24 this year.
Clearly, Prime Minister Modi has set a highly ambitious goal to have a free trade agreement signed by Diwali. Now it implies that both our negotiators and those from India would need to work really hard. But we are more than happy to do so,. Cleverly told PTI in an interview on the sidelines of the high-level UN General Assembly session on Wednesday. “We want to make sure that the agreement we reach with India, ideally by Diwali, is the first step in a long-term trade and economic partnership, There is therefore a lot to be do and very little time”,. According to Cleverly, who also expressed his desire to meet the ambition of the Prime Minister.
UK – INDIA RELATIONSHIP
cleverly said “We need to keep talking about issues like how climate change affects food security. How we can work together to resolve problems throughout the world,. Including the Russian invasion of Ukraine, and of course how to bring about that resolution. Hence, a very, very busy agenda “. The range of potential agreements also increases complexity. The mutual recognition of qualifications and experience is also “incredibly important now.“ In addition to the usual categories covered by a free trade agreement, such as exports and imports of manufactured commodities, agricultural goods, technology, and services.
“He (Modi) is an extremely energising political leader,. has enormous ambition. He has high ambitions for India as a nation and our relationship with India, and this is all very good. Because of the conversation we had,. I am aware that our Prime Minister (Truss) wants us to match the dynamism and aspirations of your Prime Minister. And as a result, the other ministers and officials will need to work quickly and diligently “.
“We have such a strong history and intertwined economies and communities, so it is a challenge in a good sense,” He remarked. Speaking at a gathering at Columbia University, Jai shankar said that India just completed trade agreements with Australia and the United Arab Emirates. “Negotiations with the UK are very advanced and are in the middle. We have restarted our work with the EU, and there are certain other things that will happen. Piyush Goyal – The minister of commerce and industry,. Stated last month that the negotiations for the potential free trade agreement between India and the UK are moving along more quickly.
OVERSEAS INVESTMENT
The partnership aims to increase bilateral investment and trade between the two nations. According to Goyal, India signed a trade agreement with the UAE in “record” time, and “now our talks with the UK are progressing at a faster pace.” India and the UK formally entered into negotiations for a free trade agreement in January. They have set Diwali as the deadline for reaching an agreement.
Cleverly got his first opportunity to formally speak with his Indian counterpart following Jai shankar, “Very very kind message that he wrote congratulating me,” When he assumed the position of Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth, and Development Affairs of the U.K. under the new administration of Prime Minister Truss, Who took power at the beginning of this month when Queen Elizabeth had passed away. The 96-year-old British monarch passed suddenly two days after Truss first visited her at Scotland’s Balmoral Castle.
The British High Commissioner to India Alex Ellis said in New Delhi,. The best way to celebrate Diwali will be to have a good free trade agreement between India and the United Kingdom.
He observed that the free trade agreement FTA will lead to the creation of more jobs more growth and opportunities for both India and the UK. Speaking on the sidelines of an event he asserted that there was “High Ambition” to complete the “India-UK FTA by Diwali.” – A deadline set earlier by both nations — and added, “that would be an auspicious date”.
The British High Commissioner quipped, “I hope so,” when asked if one could anticipate a “Diwali Dhamaka” for India in connection with the FTA. Ellis had earlier stated in a speech to the Assocham convention that,. “we have the ambition to finalise the FTA before Diwali.” Around 70% of all trade between India and the UK is made up primarily of services. By the end of this decade, both nations want to double their bilateral commerce to $100 billion.