“Don’t Think Things (Ties) Have Ever Been As Good”: Boris Johnson to Narendra Modi

“I have never seen such a joyful reception. I wouldn’t get that necessarily anywhere in the world,” he said.

New Delhi: UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson today thanked Prime Minister Narendra Modi for a ‘fantastic welcome’ and said his India visit is a ‘very auspicious moment’ for both countries as things have never been as good in UK-India relations as they are now. “I have never seen such a joyful reception. I wouldn’t get that necessarily anywhere in the world,” he added.

The UK’s partnership with India is a beacon in stormy seas as the world faces growing threats from autocratic states which seek to undermine democracy, choke off fair trade and trample on sovereignty, Mr Johnson said on Friday.

The British Prime Minister is on a two-day visit to India to hold in-depth talks on the UK and India’s strategic defence, diplomatic and economic partnership, aimed at bolstering close partnership and stepping up security cooperation in the Indo-Pacific. Mr Johnson is expected to discuss next-generation defence and security collaboration across the five domains – land, sea, air, space and cyber – as the two countries face “complex new threats”, a release from the UK side said.

“UK will work with India to boost security in the Indo-Pacific, including new fighter jet technology, helicopters and collaboration in the undersea battle space. PM will also discuss new cooperation on clean and renewable energy,” a British High Commission release said.

The UK Prime Minister will also hold talks with External Affairs Minister (EAM) S Jaishankar. The two sides will issue a press statement at around 1 pm at Hyderabad House.

During Boris Johnson’s visit, UK and Indian businesses are going to confirm more than 1 billion pounds in new investments and export deals today in areas from software engineering to health, creating almost 11,000 jobs across the UK, the British High Commission said in the statement.