UK Foreign Secy to discuss Russia-Ukraine war, bilateral trade ties with EAM Jaishankar

"The principles of UN Charter are important and that is exactly what our Foreign Secretary will be talking about with Minister Jaishankar tomorrow," Alex Ellis, British High Commissioner to India said on Wednesday. Ahead of UK Foreign Secretary Liz Truss' visit to India on Thursday, March 31, the British High Commissioner hinted that talks may be held on the Russia-Ukraine war between the two nations, while stating that he did not want to 'comment on the specific issues.'

Notably, India has maintained a fairly neutral stance compared to countries of the West and has strongly batted for diplomacy and de-escalation of tensions between Moscow and Kyiv.

"I don't want to comment on specific issues regarding Ukraine. What I would say is that principles of UN Charter are important to us all. That is exactly what our Foreign Secretary will be talking with Minister Jaishankar tomorrow," said Alex Ellis, as per Republic's sources.

"But there are many other aspects as well - the climate change challenge, the long-term challenge of trade, of health. So, we will have to look at all of these challenges together. But together UK and India are quite a might force," he added.

The Foreign Secretary is expected to meet EAM Jaishankar at 5 PM tomorrow. During her day-long visit, Truss will hold consultations with her Indian counterpart S Jaishankar on bilateral, regional and global issues of mutual interest.

Liz Truss to review progress on 'Roadmap 2030'

In addition to the bilateral discussions, Liz Truss will also attend the inaugural edition of the India-UK Strategic Futures Forum, a Track 1.5 dialogue between the UK and India. The dialogue is being hosted by the Indian Council of World Affairs and Policy Exchange, UK. This would be the second visit by the UK Foreign Secretary to India since the virtual summit.

The visit by the British Foreign Secretary will also give an opportunity to review the progress on 'Roadmap 2030'. According to the Ministry, the India-UK relationship was elevated to a Comprehensive Strategic Partnership during the India-UK virtual summit held between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his British counterpart Boris Johnson in May 2021. The Secretary had last travelled to India in October 2021, on an official three-day visit during which she had reviewed the 'Roadmap 2030' with Jaishankar, the Ministry of External Affairs said. The ambitious plan includes plans to double the value of the UK-India trade by 2030.