Prime Minister of India - Dr. Manmohan Singh

PM's Opening Remarks at the India-UK summit Press Conference

I am glad to welcome Prime Minister Blair. Today, we had a successful bilateral Summit at Udaipur. Yesterday, we had a historic India-EU Summit when we endorsed an Action Plan and Political Declaration to take our Strategic Partnership forward. The U.K. Presidency, under Prime Minister Blair's leadership has played a most constructive role in this. I thank Prime Minister Blair for his leadership and commitment he has shown for both these meetings.

This is the third time I have had the pleasure of meeting the Prime Minister since September last year. At our London meeting a year ago we had adopted a Joint Declaration on a strategic partnership, which outlined the direction in which we wish to take our relationship forward.

Our relationship is special and one which contains exceptional potential. Both governments are determined to realise this potential to the advantage of our peoples and our bilateral relationship.

We welcomed the fact that a Joint Economic Commission has been created to systematically advance mutual trade and investment as a follow up to the direction given by the Joint Declaration last year. An Indo-British Joint Science and Innovation Council has been set up to explore new high technology areas of collaboration. A financial and economic dialogue at the level of Finance Ministers has also been launched.

The Summit has added significance, given the simultaneous presidency of the UK of the European Union and the G-8. It was at the initiative of Prime Minister Blair that India, with four other developing countries, was invited to a dialogue with the G-8 at Gleneagles, giving concrete expression to the partnership required between the developed and the developing countries in addressing global issues.

We have agreed to cooperate in civilian nuclear energy. The UK recognises the need for a supportive international environment for meeting our pressing energy requirements. We have also agreed that our collective efforts to ensure energy security will be accorded priority.

I expressed our deepest sympathy and solidarity with the British Government and people on the terrorist atrocities that they have recently been subjected to. India, as a victim of terrorism for over two decades, extends its wholehearted support to Britain. We agreed that there can be no justification for terrorism on any grounds, religious, political, ideological or any other. Together with international unity and resolve, we can meet the challenge of this global scourge and work to bring about an international norm of zero tolerance for terrorism.

We exchanged views and reached agreement on a wide range of issues :

. We focused on measures to significantly enhance our trade and investment exchanges, including in the new and promising area of healthcare and in promoting exchanges in the area of services.

. We agreed to intensify cooperation in frontier areas of science and technology and the knowledge sector, in which both our countries have special strengths.

Several MoUs and Agreements have been finalized during the visit :

� Cooperation in the area of hydrocarbons, which is important for our overall energy policy

� An Mou on Sustainable Development

� A new Air Services Agreement

� An Agreement on Co-production of Films

� An Agreement on Intellectual Property Rights

Prime Minister Blair reaffirmed his commitment to India's candidature for the permanent membership of the expanded UNSC, on which I expressed appreciation for his government's clear and long-held position. We also had a good exchange of views on developments in our respective regions.

I conveyed that we have decided that a Chair named after Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru will be founded at Cambridge University by the Government of India. We welcome Prime Minister Blair's Education Initiative which will significantly enhance student exchanges and academic relationships at the University level.

In conclusion, I wish to reiterate that India attaches very high priority to our relations with the UK. Our ties are growing in every sphere as we give concrete meaning to a very comprehensive strategic partnership.

I now invite Prime Minister Blair to speak.