Negotiations for a India-United Kingdom Free Trade Agreement (FTA) are the main focus of ties between the two countries at present, with several “hard bits” that could need intervention at a “senior level”, the British High Commissioner to India Alex Ellis said on November 11, speaking ahead of External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar’s visit to London this week. He added that British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak is “keen” to visit India, but that the focus on the FTA talks came first.
“We’re a lot closer than we were a year ago. We’re batting deep as they would say in the Cricket World Cup, and now we’re on to the big and tricky issues, and they are substantially difficult,” Mr. Ellis said, when asked about a timeline for the FTA to be completed.
When asked whether Mr. Sunak’s visit was contingent on the FTA being ready to sign, Mr. Ellis told The Hindu in an exclusive interview that the “Prime Minister [Sunak] is keen to come [to India]. But first of all, we’ve got to focus on the FTA,” pointing to an “intense period of negotiations” that are now ongoing, with officials meeting regularly to work through issues.
