Posted on 02/05/2004 5:41:06 PM PST by mylife
Jack Straw arrives in Delhi on four-day visit
Press Trust of India
New Delhi, February 5
British Foreign Minister Jack Straw arrived on a four-day visit on Thursday as part of a major initiative to work with India to further consolidate the new strategic partnership between the two countries.
"India is a vital partner for the UK," Straw said on the eve of his visit in London and added "it is central to six of the UK's eight strategic foreign policy objectives".
He said Britain and India were committed to taking their relationship to a "new strategic level" which reflects the great mutual importance of the two countries and the global importance of India in the 21st century.
"My talks in Delhi will be about how both sides can further build on this new strategic relationship," he said.
Straw, who is on his fourth visit to India as Foreign Minister, will hold wide-ranging discussions with his Indian counterpart Yashwant Sinha on February 6 and later deliver a speech at the Scindia Foundation on 'Defeating terrorism for Global Order'.
He will call on Deputy Prime Minister LK Advani on Friday and also have meetings with Commerce and Industry Minister Arun Jaitley and leader of Opposition Sonia Gandhi. He will leave for Bangalore on February 7.
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