Description: UK’s Foreign Secretary, David Lammy and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi discussed the expansion of bilateral counter – terrorism operations in the Office of the British High Commissioner in New Delhi. The discussions were held after recent escalation of tensions between India and Pakistan which were instigated by the Pahalgam terrorist attack in Apr. Lammy also confirmed UK’s support towards finalizing the free trade agreement between the countries as they finished negotiations early in May. Lammy also stated that he held meetings with Indian Foreign Minister, Subrahmanyam Jaishankar, where similar subjects were touched upon as he also confirmed that UK’s Prime Minister Keir Starmer was set to visit India later this month to further strengthen bilateral strategic ties.
Impact: India and UK’s continued expansion of bilateral strategic ties reconfirms historically aligned influence which the UK exercises over one of the largest Asian economies since the colonial age. With severely destabilized global economy, UK would aim at strengthening their strategic alliance portfolio as India is one of the country’s most reliable and prominent partners on the Asian continent. Economies from both countries could soon be complementary, as the UK has announced a large defense sector expansion while India is continuing the emerge as a large weapons manufacturer. The recently concluded free trade agreement would further strengthen bilateral ties improving the financial standings of both countries as the UK reestablishes its foothold of influence in Asia while India encloses relations with a key strategic ally.