British PM’s brief visit had a feel-good factor
Considering it was a brief stopover visit, British Prime Minister David Cameron's day-long Delhi-Kolkata trip has been a reasonable success. He said the right things, pushed the correct buttons, and in the process created a feel-good environment around the India-UK bilateral. The trip was Mr Cameron's second to this country within a year, and the third in his tenure as Prime Minister. To that extent, it has been part of a larger diplomatic push that should pay off well for both countries in the long run. Even though no major deals or agreements were expected to be signed during Mr Cameron's visit, the arrival was well-leveraged to strengthen Britain's trade and economic ties with India.
During his meeting with Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, Mr Cameron expressed satisfaction with the level of trade engagement between the two countries and reiterated the importance of the India-EU Broadbased Trade and Investment Agreement. The two leaders also reviewed the Bangalore-Mumbai Economic Corridor, which, once completed, should tremendously boost the Indian economy. At home, Mr Cameron has often come under criticism for failing to market the UK as ‘India's partner of choice’, and this trip, like his previous one, was designed keeping those concerns in mind. Few would argue that Mr Cameron's efforts to improve trade and investment ties between India and the UK haven't paid off at all. Britain's exports to India have risen by 25 per cent this year alone, while Indian exports have gone up by 10 per cent. Similarly, more Indian investment now goes to the UK alone than it does to the rest of the European Union combined. India's Tata group is the UK's largest manufacturing employer and the fact that its chairman emeritus Ratan Tata praised the British business environment at a press conference in Delhi with Mr Cameron, has been welcomed in london. Against this backdrop, it comes as no surprise that the British Prime Minster should have expressed a desire to meet with Mr Narendra Modi. The BJP's prime ministerial candidate is known for his pro-business policies and Mr Cameron has done well to reverse the political freeze the British Government had imposed upon him.
Given that Mr Cameron's India trip was en route to Colombo where he is attending the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting, the issue of lankan Tamils in the post-lTTE era was naturally on the radar; more so, since Prime Minister Singh recently backed out of the same summit due to domestic political compulsions. A sticky situation, no doubt, but Mr Cameron handled it well. He was ‘understanding’ of Mr Singh's decision and also took the opportunity to present his views on the issue through an Op-ed in an Indian daily — smart diplomacy indeed. The other controversial matter on the agenda was Britain's changing travel and immigration policies (apart from the proposed 3,000 pound visa bond which has now been withdrawn ) which many worry hurt Indian students, tourists and workers. While still defending his Government's policies, Mr Cameron made a strong case in favour of Indian travellers. Finally, the British Prime Minister also reiterated his support for a permanent seat for India at the UN Security Council — and this has naturally been appreciated in New Delhi.