LONDON — Just days before the U.K. is set to officially restart trade talks with India, Prime Minister Narendra Modi threw open the doors of parliament for a VIP visitor: former British PM Rishi Sunak.
Sunak, who has kept a low-profile since last July’s election defeat, was given the full prime ministerial treatment — touring the halls of parliament, meeting senior ministers and taking the nation’s media by storm, with his visit splashed across New Delhi Television, the Hindustan Times, and the Indian Express.
While still prime minister, Sunak failed to land a trade deal with India ahead of the summer election, despite ministers and officials saying Modi’s government was keen to put pen to paper. He refused to make concessions in sensitive areas like social security and visas, instead pushing for a broader, deeper deal.
But now the former British leader, who remains an MP, has been making amends ahead of Trade Secretary Jonathan Reynolds’ trip next week to officially begin talks.
Modi, reunited with Sunak, took to X to call him a “great friend of India,” who is “passionate about even stronger India-U.K. ties.”
Sunak, who visited Modi with his family — including his mother-in-law, Sudha Murthy, co-founder of Indian tech giant, Infosys — also met with Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman and External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar. Jaishankar posted on X to say it was “nice to meet” Sunak, and he “appreciate[s] his constant support for strengthening relations.”
‘Complex’ talks ahead
A U.K. official, granted anonymity to speak candidly, was quick to stress that Sunak wasn’t working on the U.K. government’s behalf.
But the official noted it was common for politicians and business leaders to use their personal networks to support and advocate for closer economic ties. They also highlighted that standard protocol would have been followed to support the former PM while traveling.
Meanwhile, Trade Secretary Reynolds is gearing up for his own trip to India. He is due to fly out this Sunday, with Investment Minister Poppy Gustafsson also scheduled to arrive early next week. Gustafsson will attend the U.K.-India AI Conference, hosted at the headquarters of Infosys, the Indian tech firm owned by Sunak’s in-laws.
A person close to Sunak insisted the former prime minister has no involvement with Infosys and that his meetings weren’t about the free trade agreement.
Trade negotiations between the U.K. and India — which kicked off under Boris Johnson in April 2022 — are now back on the agenda under Keir Starmer’s Labour government.
Speaking to journalists earlier this month, Reynolds was hopeful.
“We are committed to the Indian trade deal,” he said. “Obviously no trade negotiation is an easy one [and it is] a particularly complex one with an economy the size of India, but I’m really optimistic about it.”
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