Sir Keir Starmer and India’s Narendra Modi have special reason to bear hug one another.
India is the world’s fourth biggest and is expected to become the third largest economy. In a remarkable role reversal, Britain needs India’s investment.
But Sir Keir is doing more than looking for job-generating cash. Just as he helped stop President Trump cooling on Nato, he needs to prevent India growing close to countries which threaten Britain’s interests.
The big carrot he offers is supporting India gaining a seat on the United Nations Security Council. This is a big prize for Modi, allowing the country to sit down alongside the US, Russia, China and the UK and France.
India’s relations with the US have frayed because of tariffs, and there is pressure for India to stop buying Russian oil. Vladimir Putin is due to visit India soon – and Modi phoned him to wish him happy birthday. All this comes amid regular concern about the strength of civil liberties for minority groups in India.
There would be dismay at the Foreign Office if India threw in its lot with China and Russia and became part of the autocrats’ club. But the rock star welcome put on for Sir Keir – there are something like 5,700 posters featuring up in Mumbai – shows India still believes its relationship with Britain is important.
The UK is in no doubt the relationship is vital for Britain’s future prosperity and security. The Government team in Mumbai is buzzing at how well it thinks things have gone this week. In the months ahead we’ll see if the PM has succeeded in unocking a new chapter in relations between two countries with the most intimate of shared histories.
