Britain’s efforts to strengthen its relationship with India and individual States as it seeks better non-EU alliances gathered pace as Foreign Office Minister Alok Sharma arrived in New Delhi on Thursday.
Starting his visit, Mr. Sharma met External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj and Finance Minister Arun Jaitley and held discussion on bilateral ties.
On reaching Delhi, Mr. Sharma said in a social media message, “UK wants strongest possible trade and investment relationship with India for prosperity.”
Mr. Sharma, who became Britain’s Minister for Asia and the Pacific in the government reshuffle that followed July’s European referendum, is also likely to hold meetings with Foreign Secretary S. Jaishankar and Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar before leaving for Madhya Pradesh, where he will lead a delegation of 26 businesses to the Global Investors Summit being held at the weekend, and hold discussions with Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan. Mr. Chouhan visited Britain at the end of September in an effort to woo investors to the State.
The delegation is set to combine established U.K. names such as Vodafone, Cambridge University Press and Reckitt Benckiser, as well as smaller businesses such as Cambridge-based software firm Cyan Connode.
The visit is important as it comes within four days of the Ministry of External Affairs announcing that Prime Minister Theresa May will visit India during November 6-8 accompanied by a business delegation, starting her first visit outside the EU.
Ms. May will also inaugurate the India-UK Tech Summit in Delhi during her visit. The summit was decided bilaterally during Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to the U.K. in November 2015.
Mr. Sharma, who like Ms. May was a campaigner for the “remain” camp during the referendum, has become one of the key players in Britain’s evolving relationship with India. In fact, he visited India on his first official foreign trip after taking up his new ministerial role in July. The visit to Madhya Pradesh should also be seen in the context of British efforts to move its relationship with countries such as India away from development aid.
“The U.K. has been a long-term supporter of the State, through aid and other partnerships, and it now has a vibrant economy,” said Mr. Sharma in a press statement on Thursday. “The Global Investors Summit will allow us to build and strengthen business links in thriving areas like tourism, rural development and a dynamic manufacturing and industrial sector.”
