The meeting comes a month after Braverman’s controversial remarks about Indian visa overstayers
London: Nearly a month after her controversial remarks about Indian visa overstayers, UK Home Secretary Suella Braverman and Indian High Commissioner Vikram Doraiswami discussed cooperation on migration and security issues at a meeting, a PTI report in the Tribune, Chandigarh, says.
“The High Commissioner called on the Home Secretary Suella Braverman on Wednesday, November 2, to discuss India-UK security cooperation, and to make progress under the India-UK Migration and Mobility Partnership Agreement,” the Indian High Commission in London tweeted after the meeting.
On her part Braverman tweeted in reply: “I look forward to working with our friends on mutually shared interests including security and migration,” she tweeted after the meeting.
Her earlier remarks had alleged that the agreement with the Indian government to encourage and facilitate better cooperation on illegal migration “has not necessarily worked very well”.
In reply the Inddian High Commission’s response had been that “ action has been initiated on all of the cases referred to the High Commission. Further, the UK has also undertaken to fulfill certain commitments as part of the Migration and Mobility Protocol, on which we await demonstrable progress”.
This meeting is being looked upon as a ‘conciliatory move’. On the part of Braverman
As Home Secretary in the former prime minister Liz Truss led Cabinet, Braverman is believed to have derailed the ongoing India-UK free trade agreement (FTA) negotiations from its Diwali timeline by expressing “concerns” over what she feared would be an “open borders” policy for Indians.
But matters seem to have taken a positive turn on Wednesday, November 2, at the the recently launched India (Trade and Investment) All Party Parliamentary Group’s (APPG).
At its inaugural meeting UK Trade Minister Greg Hands had reiterated in Parliament that the FTA negotiations remain ongoing.
“India is projected to be the world’s third largest economy by 2050 – offering major opportunities for UK firms,” Hands tweeted after the meeting.
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