Trade and economic cooperation and bolstering people-to-people ties will top the agenda for external affairs minister S Jaishankar’s week-long visit to the United Kingdom and Ireland next month, people familiar with the matter said.
Jaishankar is set to travel to Britain and Ireland during March 3-9, days after the planned relaunch of negotiations on the India-UK free trade agreement (FTA) in New Delhi, the people said on condition of anonymity. This will also be the first high-level visit to Ireland since 2015, when Prime Minister Narendra Modi travelled to Dublin.
Besides the focus on bolstering trade and economic ties with both countries, the visit will see the inauguration of India’s new consulate in Belfast, the capital of Northern Ireland, the people said. India currently has consulates in Birmingham and Edinburgh.
Jaishankar’s visit will come at a time of churn in Europe’s diplomatic and political circles because of the policies of the Trump administration in the US, especially on the war in Ukraine. The people said the trip will be an opportunity for the Indian side to exchange views on developments in Europe.
Ahead of the visit, Britain’s trade minister Jonathan Reynolds is set to travel to New Delhi early next week for talks with his counterpart Piyush Goyal and the resumption of negotiations on the India-UK FTA, which were paused in March 2024, ahead of elections in both countries. India-UK trade was worth $21.33 billion in 2023-24.
India and the UK have held 14 rounds of talks on the proposed FTA since January 2022, and the British side is looking at next week’s discussions as a “relaunch” of the negotiations, the people said. This is because the Labour government led by Prime Minister Keir Starmer wants to adopt a different approach than that of the previous Conservative Party government and have a fresh look at some aspects of the trade deal.
While the two sides made considerable progress in some areas of the FTA negotiations, talks stalled over differences on key issues such as mobility of Indian students and professionals to deliver services and Indian tariffs on alcoholic beverages and electric vehicles. India is also eyeing greater market access for telecommunications and financial services.
The people said Jaishankar’s visit will be an opportunity to follow up on the trade negotiations and explore other areas for economic and technology cooperation, especially in view of the launch of the Technology Security Initiative last year. This is aimed at ensuring telecommunications security and collaboration in critical minerals, semiconductors, AI and quantum computing.
The activities of pro-Khalistan elements in the UK are also expected to come up in Jaishankar’s meetings with UK interlocutors, the people said. Besides UK foreign secretary David Lammy, Jaishankar is expected to meet Starmer, they said.
Trade and technology collaboration will also be at the centre of Jaishankar’s meetings in Dublin, the people said. Ireland has gained in importance as a trade partner within the European Union (EU), with two-way trade increasing to about 16 billion euros last year. The two sides are expected to announce a new joint economic commission during Jaishankar’s visit, the people said.
A growing number of Indian firms, including Wipro, TCS and Infosys, have set up base in Ireland to access the EU market. Ireland’s updated Asia-Pacific strategy, unveiled in 2023, envisages a deeper strategic relationship with India, including enhanced trade and investment ties.
The number of Indian-origin people in Ireland too has grown in recent years to 80,000, including 40,000 NRIs and 10,000 students. The two sides are expected to unveil measures to bolster cultural and people-to-people ties during Jaishankar’s visit, the people said.