FS Shringla and UK's permanent under secretary Sir Philip Barton
London: Indian foreign secretary Harsh Vardhan Shringla and Permanent Under-Secretary at the UK’s Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office Sir Philip Barton discussed strong links between the two countries and vouched for working together on their shared ambitions.
Shringla, who is on a week European nations tour, met Sir Barton in London on Wednesday and they shared views on the next generation of challenges and opportunities, including assessments of emerging global security threats.
They explored areas for the UK and India to collaborate in multilateral events, committing to work closely together through the UK’s G7 and COP Presidencies and India’s G20 Presidency in 2022.
"Foreign Secretary @harshvshringla held consultations with Permanent #UnderSecretary, Sir @PhilipRBarton @FCDOGovUK on multi-faceted #IndiaUK cooperation, exchanged views on global and regional issues, international terrorism & #Covid19 pandemic response," Indian High Commission in the UK said in a tweet.
Foreign Secretary @harshvshringla held consultations with Permanent #UnderSecretary, Sir @PhilipRBarton @FCDOGovUK on multi-faceted #IndiaUK cooperation, exchanged views on global and regional issues, international terrorism & #Covid19 pandemic response.@MEAIndia @DrSJaishankar pic.twitter.com/A9avvROynJ
— India in the UK (@HCI_London) November 4, 2020
Speaking after the meeting, Sir Philip Barton said: “I am delighted to welcome Foreign Secretary Shringla to London to discuss our joint priorities. India has a special place in my heart and I know first-hand the importance of building the relationship between our two countries.’’
‘‘Foreign secretary Shringla and I agreed a strengthened UK-India partnership will be a force for good in the world, in facing the big international challenges over the next decade, such as climate change and global security,” he said.
The meeting was the latest in a series of high-level UK-India engagements, following the Finance Minister-led Economic and Financial Dialogue last week and the subsequent virtual visit of the Minister for Investment.
It precedes a planned High Level Trade Ministerial in November.
Today @harshvshringla and I agreed that a strengthened UK-India partnership will be a force for good in the world. We will work together over the next decade to tackle global challenges, such as #climatechange and security. @JanThompsonFCDO @MEAIndia pic.twitter.com/kJ6M6oZT8O
— Philip Barton (@PhilipRBarton) November 4, 2020
Sir Philip, formerly High Commissioner to India until August this year, represented the UK in his first high-level meeting with any country since taking up his new position as head of the UK’s diplomatic and development service.
During the meeting, Sir Philip extended an invitation for Prime Minister Narendra Modi to attend the December Climate Ambition Summit.
The UK, as COP26 (to be held in Glasgow next December) President, the UN and France will host the virtual leader-level Summit on December 12 on the five-year anniversary of the Paris Agreement, in partnership with Chile (as COP25 Presidents) and Italy (COP26 partners).
