Ready to conclude FTA with India: New UK PM Keir Starmer tells Modi in his first call

United Kingdom’s new Prime Minister Keir Starmer spoke to PM Narendra Modi on Saturday morning and said he stood ready to conclude a free trade agreement (FTA) that worked for both sides.

Both the leaders exchanged congratulations on their respective election wins.

“The Prime Minister [Starmer] said he looked forward to further deepening the strong and respectful relationship between both countries, and welcomed Prime Minister Modi’s leadership on key global challenges, such as climate change and economic growth,” said spokesperson for the UK prime minister's office.

Both the nations have been working on a FTA for more than two years but the talks were stalled in the 14th round amidst the general elections in the two countries.

The FTA talks are expected to resume as the new Starmer-led Labour government has took the office. UK’s Labour Party won the general elections with a landslide this week.

“Discussing the Free Trade Agreement, the Prime Minister said he stood ready to conclude a deal that worked for both sides. The leaders hoped to meet at the earliest opportunity,” the spokesperson added.

The two leaders also discussed the 2030 Roadmap and agreed that there was a wide range of areas including defence and security, critical and emerging technology, and climate change for the two countries to deepen cooperation on.

The Labour Party’s election manifesto had also committed to clinching the FTA deal, stating: “We will seek a new strategic partnership with India, including an FTA, as well as deepening cooperation in areas like security, education, technology and climate change.”

Last week, David Lammy, UK’s new foreign secretary, had also said that he wants to “finish the job” on the FTA and he plans to visit India within the first month of being elected.

“My message to [Finance] Minister Sitharaman and [Trade] Minister Goyal is that Labour is ready to go. Let’s finally get our free trade deal done and move on,” he had said at the India Global Forum in London.