India and the UK unveiled a new joint arrangement whereby 3,000 degree-educated nationals can come to Britain every year to live and work. They also expressed their commitment to a free trade agreement (FTA) as Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his British counterpart Rishi Sunak reviewed progress in the Roadmap 2023 for bilateral ties.
Modi and Sunak, who met for the first time on the sidelines of the G20 Summit in Bali, held talks on collaboration in areas such as trade, mobility, defense, and security at a time when the conclusion of an FTA, earlier slated to be completed by Diwali, has slowed down amid the political unrest in the UK in recent months.
Modi also held bilateral meetings with French President Emmanuel Macron, Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, and Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong. Regional and global issues, such as the situation in the Indo-Pacific and the Ukraine war, figured the meetings.
Modi and Macron discussed collaboration in defense, civil nuclear, and trade. They welcomed the deepening of cooperation in new areas of economic engagement.
The Prime Minister and German Chancellor Scholz reviewed bilateral cooperation and agreed to deepen trade, investment ties, and association in mobility and infrastructure.
Modi and Albanese reviewed progress in education, clean energy, and critical minerals. Lee Hsien Loong and Modi reiterated their commitment to expanding trade and investment links between India and Singapore, especially in renewable energy, skill development, and medical services.
