Politics
Modi, Starmer hail ‘new energy’ in India-UK ties
- India’s Modi, UK’s Starmer hail trade deal as transformative.
- Starmer expects major new investments to add thousands of jobs
- India tipped to overtake Japan as fourth-largest economy this year.
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi told his British counterpart Keir Starmer on Thursday that relations had made “significant progress”, as they pledged to unlock “unparalleled” economic opportunities.
Starmer is on his first visit to India as the premier, accompanied by a 125-member delegation, after the two countries signed a trade deal in London in July.
Under the accord, India will slash tariffs on imports of British goods such as cosmetics and medical devices, while Britain will reduce duties on clothing, footwear and food products, including frozen prawns from India.
“This agreement will reduce import costs between our two countries, create new employment opportunities for youth, boost trade, and benefit both our industry and consumers,” said Modi.
He told his “friend” Starmer that his visit “symbolises the new energy” in ties between the nations.
“Together we will build a bright future for the people of both countries”, he told Starmer, speaking in Hindi.
India and its former colonial ruler share bilateral trade worth around $54.8 billion and investments supporting more than 600,000 jobs across both countries.
India became the world’s fifth-largest economy in 2022, when its GDP overtook Britain’s, according to IMF figures. It is tipped to overtake Japan as the fourth largest later this year.
“India’s growth story is remarkable,” said Starmer, noting New Delhi’s ambition to become the world’s third-largest economy by 2028.
“Everything I’ve seen since I’ve been here is absolute proof to me that you’re on track to succeed in that,” he said. “So, we want to be partners on that journey.”
Starmer, who returns to London later on Thursday, said he expected by his departure to have “secured major new investments, creating thousands of high-skilled jobs” for both nations.
“My visit this week is about doubling down on the potential of our trade deal for the benefit of all of us”, Starmer said.
The leaders also announced a defence cooperation deal, as well as pushing education ties, including support for the nine British universities opening campuses in India.
US President Donald Trump purchased about $100 million in municipal and corporate bonds from mid-November to late December, his latest disclosures showed, including up to $2 million in Netflix and Warner Bros Discovery bonds just weeks after the companies announced their merger.
Financial disclosures posted on Thursday and Friday showed the majority of Trump’s purchases were municipal bonds from cities, local school districts, utilities and hospitals.
But he also bought bonds from companies including Boeing, Occidental Petroleum and General Motors.
The investments were the latest reported assets added to Trump’s expanding portfolio while he is in office.
It includes holdings in sectors that benefit from his policies, raising questions about conflicts of interest.
For example, Trump said in December that he would have a say in whether Netflix can proceed with its proposed $83 billion acquisition of Warner Bros Discovery, which faces a rival bid from Paramount Skydance.
Any deal to acquire Warner Bros will need regulatory approval.
A White House official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, said on Friday that Trump’s stock and bond portfolio is independently managed by third-party financial institutions and neither Trump nor any member of his family has any ability to direct, influence or provide input regarding how the portfolio is invested.
Like many wealthy individuals, Trump regularly buys bonds as part of his investment portfolio.
He previously disclosed at least $82 million in bond purchases from late August to early October.
US President Donald Trump has reiterated his claim of having stopped a war between Pakistan and India, while also saying that Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif thanked him for saving at least 10 million lives.
He made the remarks at the renaming of Southern Boulevard to Donald J Trump Boulevard in Washington on Friday.
“In a year, we made eight peace deals and ended the conflict in Gaza. We have peace in the Middle East…We stopped India and Pakistan from fighting, two nuclear nations…The Pakistani Prime Minister said Donald Trump saved at least 10 million people, and it was amazing,” he said.
The US president further recalled that the Pakistani prime minister’s remarks were an honour for him.
Trump cited his administration’s foreign policy record and repeated assertions of brokering peace between the two nuclear-armed neighbours.
Trump has made similar claims multiple times since May 10 last year, arguing that US pressure helped defuse tensions between India and Pakistan.
Saudi Arabia’s 90-year-old King Salman was discharged from hospital after undergoing medical tests in the capital Riyadh, the kingdom’s Royal Court said on Friday, adding that the results were “reassuring”.
The monarch “left the King Faisal Specialist Hospital in Riyadh today (Friday) after undergoing medical tests that proved reassuring”, the royal court said in a statement shared on state media, having announced his admission earlier in the day.
Saudi Arabia, the world’s biggest crude oil exporter, has for years sought to quell speculation over King Salman’s health.
He has been on the throne since 2015, though his son Mohammed bin Salman was named crown prince in 2017 and acts as de facto ruler.
The monarch’s well-being is rarely discussed, but he has been admitted for surgery and tests on multiple occasions in recent years.
In 2024, the Royal Court said he suffered from lung infections, which he recovered from.
He was hospitalised in May 2022, when he went in for a colonoscopy and stayed for just over a week for other tests and “some time to rest”, the official Saudi Press Agency reported at the time.
He was also admitted to hospital in March 2022 to undergo what state media described as “successful medical tests” and to change the battery of his pacemaker.
In 2020, he underwent surgery to remove his gall bladder.
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