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UK, India are natural partners, says British PM Johnson

British prime minister Boris Johnson with his Indian counterpart Narendra Modi at COP26 climate summit in Glasgow, Scotland, in November 2021. (Photo by Ian Forsyth/Getty Images)

By: Shubham Ghosh

BRITISH prime minister Boris Johnson on Tuesday (14) described the UK and India as “natural partners” who are working together on many “fantastic projects” ranging from partnership on 5G and telecom to startups that will transform people’s lives and promote the principles of freedom, openness and peace.

In a special address to the 2021 Global Technology Summit virtually, Johnson said over the coming decade, the UK and India will continue working on deepening their bonds on technology and other areas as they have decided in the 2030 India-UK roadmap.

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The 2030 roadmap for stronger UK-India strategic ties was signed by Johnson and his Indian counterpart Narendra Modi during a virtual summit in May.

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“With our shared culture of innovation and our entrepreneurial spirit, the UK and India are natural partners. We’re working together on many fantastic projects, from the UK-India partnership on 5G and telecom to the UK startups who are working with India giants,” the Conservative leader said.

“Working side-by-side, we will not only make breakthroughs that will transform people’s lives, but we’ll help shape a new technology based on the principles of freedom, openness and peace,” the British prime minister said in his special address to the 6th annual Global Technology Summit.

The summit was co-hosted by the non-governmental organisation Carnegie India along with India’s ministry of external affairs on the theme of Global Meets Local.

“We know that a huge advantage awaits us with artificial intelligence and quantum computing and with technology poised to help us find answers to some of humanity’s biggest challenges.

“That’s why I was so pleased earlier this year when my friend Prime Minister Narendra Modi and I agreed that our two countries should work closer than ever before on technology and the roles that will help us shape the coming age,” Johnson.

UK foreign secretary lauds India

UK foreign secretary Liz Truss, who also addressed the summit, said that hostile forces use technology to gain the upper hand. “That’s why freedom-loving democracies need to step-up to shape global technologies and champion our interest,” she said.

Truss also said that India and the UK are natural partners.

“Every time I visit India or meet Indian businesses, I am reminded of what natural partners we are. We’re open to the world as outward looking nations, which is why the UK is India’s 2nd largest investment destination,” she said.

While Indian giants from Infosys to Tata are growing their businesses across India, British brands are also selling India high-quality goods and services like fintech, clean technologies, etc, Truss said.

“Such openness to business and opportunity is why we are able to tackle the greatest challenges of our time. For example, we saw the peak of the pandemic… teamed up with our NHS to create a tele-medicine trial system. It was a bold step, we saved hundreds of lives,” she said.

“Our openness to enterprises and tech businesses are flourishing that are based in our nations,” she said.

The UK is home to the third largest tech unicorns in the world while India has the third largest number of tech firms, according to Truss.

“By harnessing the full potential of free enterprise and technology, we drive forward economic recovery and human progress,” she said.

Johnson’s remarks at the summit came over a month after he met Modi in Glasgow on the sidelines of the COP26 climate summit and discussed ways to enhance bilateral cooperation in areas such as green hydrogen, renewables and clean technology, economy and defence.

At the COP26 summit, Johnson and Modi met for the first time in person after the former’s visit to India was cancelled twice earlier this year due to Covid-19 pandemic.

The two prime ministers reviewed the implementation of the roadmap priorities, particularly in trade and economy, people-to-people, health, defence and security areas.

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