UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak attended the India-UK NSA dialogue between British counterpart Tim Barrow and India’s National Security Adviser (NSA) Ajit Doval at the UK Cabinet Office as a “special gesture” on February 3. During the discussion, Sunak emphasised the UK government’s support for strengthening strategic alliances in sectors, including trade, defence, and science and technology.
On his way back from Washington, where he met his American colleague Jake Sullivan for comparable discussions, Doval stopped in London for an annual bilateral strategic conversation.
“A special gesture by PM Rishi Sunak to join for a while the India-UK NSA dialogue between Sir Tim Barrow and Mr. Doval at Cabinet Office,” the Indian High Commission in London and Ministry of External Affairs tweeted late on Saturday, with reference to the meeting.
In order to strengthen their bilateral ties in all areas, including defence and security, India and the UK have agreed on a 2030 Roadmap. Six rounds of negotiations have taken place for a free trade agreement (FTA) between the two parties, and a seventh-round is likely to take place in the UK in the coming weeks. Bilateral commerce between the two countries now amounts to about 29.6 billion pounds annually, according to official UK government figures. Both the parties hope to increase the figure through an FTA.
