- Wednesday, May 01, 2024
Jaishankar said he also discussed a broad range of issues ranging from the Free Trade Agreement (FTA) and South Asia to Indo-Pacific and G20 with the Conservative peer.
By: Shubham Ghosh
India’s external affairs minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar on Monday (29) asked visiting British minister Lord Tariq Ahmad of Wimbledon to ensure security of India’s diplomatic missions in the UK and prevent misuse of democratic freedoms.
The diplomat’s assertions during a meeting with Lord Ahmad, the minister of state for foreign, commonwealth and development affairs, came against the the backdrop of vandalism of the Indian high commission in London in March by pro-Khalistan supporters.
Jaishankar took to Twitter to share the issues he raised during his discussions with Lord Ahmad.
“Met with UK MOS Lord Tariq Ahmad today in New Delhi… Underlined the obligation to ensure security of our diplomatic missions and prevent misuse of democratic freedoms,” he said.
Met with UK MOS Lord @tariqahmadbt today in New Delhi.
Discussed a broad range of issues, from FTA and South Asia to Indo-Pacific and G20.
Underlined the obligation to ensure security of our diplomatic missions and prevent misuse of democratic freedoms. pic.twitter.com/BuhrZ7zRp4
— Dr. S. Jaishankar (@DrSJaishankar) May 29, 2023
Last month, the Indian home ministry had handed over the probe in the case of attack on the Indian mission in London to the country’s elite National Investigation Agency after a meeting with representatives from Britain.
Jaishankar said he also discussed a broad range of issues ranging from the Free Trade Agreement (FTA) and South Asia to Indo-Pacific and G20 with the visiting minister, who is also a Conservative peer.
India and the UK have had nine rounds of negotiations of their free trade agreement. They have been negotiating an FTA since January last year, with a goal towards a comprehensive pact that is expected to significantly enhance the bilateral trading relationship worth an estimated GBP 34 billion in 2022.
Recently, Britain’s chief negotiator for the FTA – Harjinder Kang – was appointed the country’s new trade commissioner to South Asia and deputy high commissioner for western India, based in Mumbai.
According to UK government statistics, India was the UK’s 12th largest trading partner in the four quarters to the end of Q3 2022, accounting for 2.1 per cent of total UK trade.
(With PTI inputs)
