Rishi Sunak, the first person of Indian origin to become Britain’s prime minister, said in an exclusive interview to PTI days ahead of the September 9-10 G-20 summit here that relations between Britain and India are better. than the current relationship between the two countries, will define their future.
He said, “India’s size, diversity and its extraordinary successes mean that it is the right country at the right time to chair the G20. I admire Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s leadership over the past year and it is wonderful to see the global leadership that India is taking.
“Through our G20 presidency, we will work together to tackle the world’s major challenges, from stabilizing the global economy to tackling climate change,” Prime Minister Sunak said in an emailed response to questions from PTI. We will work together with India.
Sunak, Prime Minister Modi, US President Joe Biden, French President Emmanuel Macron, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida and other G-20 leaders will hold a wide-ranging discussion on important global issues, including the outcome of the Ukraine war. sitting
“The year 2023 is a big year for India, from the various G20 meetings to be held across the country to the Cricket World Cup next month – India is sure to have some of the biggest global geopolitical events this year,” Sunak said.
The British prime minister also referred to the Russian attack on Ukraine and said that if Russian President Vladimir Putin was allowed to attack a sovereign neighboring country, it would have “terrible consequences” for the entire world.
Sunak said, ‘As two of the world’s leading democracies, our people define us and guide us. That is why the UK is focused on supporting Ukraine to counter illegal and unprovoked Russian aggression.’
He said, ‘Ukraine as an independent and democratic country has the right to decide its own future. If Putin is allowed to attack a sovereign neighbor with impunity, there will be dire consequences for the entire world. No one wants peace more than the people of Ukraine, but it is Putin who has the power to end this war by withdrawing his troops tomorrow.
“Until he does, we will help vulnerable people in Ukraine and around the world deal with the dire consequences of Putin’s war,” Sunak said. “This includes increasing global food and energy prices due to his (Putin’s) manipulation of markets and attacks on grain supplies.”
Sunak’s comments come at a time when India is facing the challenge of building consensus on the text of the G20 leaders’ manifesto to address the Ukraine crisis.
In last year’s Bali Declaration, both Russia and China agreed on two paragraphs on the Ukraine war, but this year they backed out, creating problems for India.
“India has chaired the G20 at a time when the world is facing many challenges,” Sunak said. Elsewhere has seen the suppression of human rights.”
He said he looked forward to meeting Prime Minister Narendra Modi and discussing how cooperation between India and Britain can help address various global challenges.
“When I meet Prime Minister Modi again this week, it will be an opportunity to talk about some of the global challenges we face and what a big role Britain and India can play in addressing them,” Sunak said.
“We will have to wait and see what the outcome of the summit is,” Sunak said on the possible outcome of the G20 summit. The UK is certainly here to support India’s efforts to make the conference a success.
Sunak discussed in detail various dimensions of India-UK relations, including cultural and people-to-people relations. He said: “What makes the UK-India relationship truly unique is the ‘living bridge’ between our countries, including the 1.6 million Indian diaspora in the UK that connects our people through culture, education, food, sport and much more.
“Recognizing our countries’ close ties and overlapping interests, two years ago we agreed on the ‘2030 Roadmap’, a historic commitment to bring our countries, economies and people closer together,” he said.
Sunak said: “We have already achieved a lot under this roadmap, including mutual recognition of higher education qualifications, new visa routes for young professionals and billions in new investment deals with British companies such as Tesco, Deliveroo and Revolut. These companies are establishing or expanding their presence in India and also creating thousands of new jobs.
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