UK PM Johnson to visit India on April 21 to strengthen ties
Darpan News Desk, 20 Apr, 2022 10:45 AM
UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson will pay an official visit to India from April 21-22. This will be his maiden visit to India as Prime Minister, said the Ministry of External Affairs on Sunday.
During the two-day meet, the British Prime Minister will first land in Ahmedabad on April 21 and then proceed to Delhi.
The ministry statement said, "At the invitation of Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi, the Rt. Hon'ble Boris Johnson MP, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom will pay an official visit to India from 21-22 April 2022. This will be his maiden visit to India as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom."
During the visit, Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the UK PM are likely to discuss trade, defence and the Ukraine crisis.
"The Prime Ministers will review implementation of the Roadmap 2030 and set their vision for further intensifying cooperation across the full spectrum of bilateral ties. They will also exchange views on regional and global issues of mutual interest," said the ministry.
"Prime Minister Johnson will be accorded a ceremonial welcome at Rashtrapati Bhavan and will hold bilateral consultations with the Prime Minister on April 22. Besides official engagements in New Delhi, the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom will also visit Gujarat on April 21.
"India and the United Kingdom enjoy a long and historical relationship which was elevated to a Comprehensive Strategic Partnership during the India-UK Virtual Summit in 2021," said the ministry in a statement.
The announcement came shortly after President Vladimir Putin authorised a "special military operation" in the conflict-hit Donbas region in eastern Ukraine. Flights to Kiev, Dnepr, Lvov and Odessa airports "are restricted due to potential hazard for civil aviation
The United Nations refugee agency said on Thursday that the situation was quickly deteriorating after Russia's invasion. It appealed to neighbouring countries to keep their borders open to people seeking a safe haven.
There are an estimated 25,000 Indian students in Ukraine alone who are pursuing medicine, engineering, and science courses. More than 2,500 students from Tamil Nadu are estimated to be studying in Ukraine.
The Foreign Secretary stated that External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar has spoken to his Polish, Romanian, Hungarian, and Slovakian counterparts for setting up a camp at border areas for evacuation of stranded Indian nationals. He also stated that flight options are available through Dubai and Istanbul and that the Indian Embassy continues to be operational in Ukraine.
The Ministry of External Affairs in touch with all the neighbouring countries surrounding Ukraine to even evacuate Indian citizens. Many citizens who were to fly back to India were left at the airport after closure of Ukrainian airspace following Russia's Vladimir Putin announcement of a military operation in Ukraine.
Amidst the prevailing tension, the Indian students stranded in Ukraine are left with no choice but to queue up outside the Indian Embassy in Kiev seeking the authorities' help as they ran out of food and money. The Russian military actions in Ukraine have triggered panic among all sections, including students from India.
