LONDON • Britain and India have announced £1 billion (S$1.86 billion) of private sector investment and committed to seek a free trade deal, with British Prime Minister Boris Johnson hailing a new era in bilateral relations.
Mr Johnson held a virtual meeting with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday, making up for a trade visit he had to cancel last month because of surging Covid-19 infections in India.
Britain, the world's fifth largest economy, sees closer ties with India, the sixth biggest, as a key pillar of its post-Brexit push to seek trade and influence in the Indo-Pacific region and address growing Chinese dominance.
"The agreements we have made today mark the beginning of a new era in the UK-India relationship," Mr Johnson said in a statement.
"The UK and India share many fundamental values... There is a living bridge uniting the people of our countries."
India won independence from former colonial power Britain in 1947 and the two countries retain deep ties, with more than a million Britons claiming Indian origin.
During the virtual summit, a "Roadmap 2030" was adopted to elevate bilateral ties to a "comprehensive strategic partnership".
An official statement by India's Ministry of External Affairs says the road map will pave the way for a deeper and stronger engagement over the next 10 years in the key areas of people-to-people contacts, trade and economy, defence and security, climate action and health.
The British government set out £533 million of Indian investment into Britain - including £240 million by the Serum Institute of India for its vaccines and sales business - and £446 million of export deals for British businesses.
A pact on immigration sought to address friction between the two allies, with Britain saying there are too many Indians living illegally in Britain and India saying tens of thousands who go to Britain to study are being denied job opportunities.
The deal will provide enhanced employment prospects for 3,000 young Indian professionals annually, in return for India agreeing to take back any of its citizens who are living illegally in Britain.
The two countries also announced agreements on climate change, technology and pharmaceuticals.
The investment announcement came alongside an enhanced trade partnership agreement, and both sides committed to begin full trade talks in the autumn with the ambition of doubling existing bilateral trade by 2030.
The partnership deal will lift export barriers on goods ranging from British apples to medical devices, and open up India's legal services sector to British firms. In return, Britain will improve access to its fisheries and nursing sectors.
The challenges of reaching a trade agreement were underlined by separate news on Tuesday that the European Union and India had agreed to restart trade talks that have been stalled since 2013.
Some of the investments announced by Britain on Tuesday had already been made public. British estimates combined with data from the companies involved showed the deals would create more than 6,500 jobs in Britain.
REUTERS, XINHUA
