India-UK Vision 2035 (Policy Paper)

Strategic Collaborations: India-UK Vision 2035

Policy paper
India-UK Vision 2035
Published 24 July 2025

Introduction

The Prime Ministers of India and the United Kingdom, during their meeting on 24 July 2025, in London endorsed the new ‘India-UK Vision 2035’ that reaffirms their shared commitment to unlocking the full potential of a revitalised partnership. This ambitious and future-focused agreement underscores the 2 nations’ resolve to work together for mutual growth, prosperity and to shape a prosperous, secure, and sustainable world in a time of rapid global change.

Increased ambition: since elevating the relationship to a Comprehensive Strategic Partnership, India and the UK have catalysed significant partnerships and growth across all sectors. The new vision builds on this momentum, setting ambitious goals to deepen and diversify bilateral co-operation.

Strategic vision: by 2035, flagship partnerships will redefine the India-UK relationship delivering transformative opportunities and tangible benefits for both countries. The India-UK Vision 2035 sets clear strategic goals and milestones, tracking a path for sustained future collaboration and innovation.

Comprehensive outcomes: the pillars of the India-UK Vision 2035 are designed to reinforce one another, creating a partnership that is greater than the sum of its parts across a wide and deep range of outcomes including:

• growth and jobs in the UK and India, building on an ambitious trade deal that unlocks markets and opportunities for both countries
• an education and skills partnership to nurture the next generation of global talent, deepening transnational education collaborations between UK and Indian universities, including the establishment of campuses of leading universities in each other’s countries
• develop cutting-edge technology and research, building on the Technology Security Initiative, focused on future telecoms, AI and critical minerals, laying the ground for future collaboration on semi-conductors, quantum, bio-technology and advanced materials
• a transformative climate partnership focussed on accelerating clean energy, mobilising climate finance at scale, and strengthening resilience
• defence and security co-operation, including a common commitment to peace, security and prosperity in the Indo-Pacific and beyond

The India-UK Vision 2035 will be anchored in sustained high-level political engagement. Both countries reaffirm their commitment to regular meetings of the 2 Prime Ministers to provide strategic direction and oversight. Implementation of India-UK Vision 2035 will be reviewed annually by the External Affairs Minister of India and the Foreign Secretary of the UK. The focused Ministerial mechanisms will address cross sectoral issues including technology, trade, investment and financial sector co-operation. These engagements will ensure that the partnership remains dynamic, responsive, and aligned with shared strategic interests.

India and the United Kingdom reaffirm their shared commitment to a rules-based international order and to strengthening multilateralism through meaningful reform. Both sides will work together to promote reform of the United Nations, including the Security Council, and multilateral institutions such as the Commonwealth, WTO, WHO, IMF, and the World Bank, ensuring these bodies reflect contemporary global realities and are equipped to address emerging challenges.

People-to-people links underpin every facet of the UK-India relationship. Both countries will enhance co-operation on education and cultural exchange, and consular matters to better serve the needs of their citizens and diaspora communities.

India and the UK are committed to deepening and diversifying their bilateral co-operation with time bound action under the different pillars of Vision 2035, and preparing our 2 countries for a BRISK partnership for the future, based on Business, Research, Innovation, Science and technology and Knowledge.

Growth

India-UK bilateral trade has grown significantly over the last decade. The signing of the India-UK Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA) and agreement to negotiate a Double Contribution Convention is a milestone in our bilateral relations. The trade deal will boost economic growth in both countries and support jobs and prosperity. Both sides are committed to working towards early conclusion of a Bilateral Investment Treaty (BIT).

The agreed Free Trade Agreement is only the start for our joint ambitious partnership for growth. The UK and India agree to take forward initiatives to drive sustainable long-term growth and job creation for both countries. Both sides will support innovation, research and regulatory collaboration in priority growth sectors such as renewable energy, health and life sciences, critical and emerging technologies, professional and business services, financial services, the creative industries, and defence. The 2 sides will work together to:

1. Continue to grow bilateral trade between the 2 countries, both in goods and services, aiming for more ambitious flows in both directions following the India-UK Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA).
2. Drive forward the UK India relationship on trade and investment through a refreshed Joint Economic and Trade Committee (JETCO) that will also ensure implementation of the India UK Comprehensive Economic Trade Agreement (CETA). The Economic & Financial Dialogue (EFD) and strengthened Financial Markets Dialogue (FMD) will continue to serve as key platforms for advancing co-operation on macroeconomic policy, financial regulation and investment. These engagements will help foster a more resilient, inclusive and growth oriented economic partnership between India and the UK.
3. Build strong partnerships between the UK and Indian business community by providing platforms and opportunities for business leaders to meet on a regular basis.
4. Enhance capital markets connectivity between India and the UK and enhance collaboration in the insurance, pensions and asset management sectors.
5. Build on the continued work of the India-UK Financial Partnership (IUKFP) by including new areas for co-operation such as Innovation and Artificial Intelligence (AI) in financial services, green finance, and asset management and investment. Also build on the UK-India Infrastructure Financing Bridge (UKIIFB) to enhance bilateral business flows in selected sectors and unlock infrastructure investment in India.
6. Promote secure economic growth in key industrial sectors through regular dialogue mechanisms on Supply Chain Resilience on mutually identified sectors.
7. Deepen ties between the Indian and UK legal professions by affirming commitment to closer bilateral co-operation via the established UK India Legal Profession Committee.
8. Improve connectivity between the UK and India, expanding air travel and routes between the 2 countries, working towards renewing the UK India Air Services Agreement and enhancing co-operation on transport infrastructure.
9. Protect and drive a resilient global economic and financial system by using leadership positions in multilateral forums and best practices to address the flow of international illicit finance and strengthen international tax co-operation and tax transparency standards. Both sides reaffirm to strengthen the rules-based, non-discriminatory, fair, open, inclusive, equitable and transparent multilateral trading system, with WTO at its core. Both sides also reaffirm the WTO provisions on special and differential treatment for developing members and least-developed countries (LDCs) as an integral part of WTO and its agreements.
10. Catalyse inclusive growth through investments from the UK’s Development Finance Institution, British International Investment (BII), and through the UK-India Development Capital Investment Partnership to build markets and sectors of mutual interest, such as green growth, and to boost the UK India investment corridor. Both Governments acknowledged the strength of bilateral investment partnership and will work to mobilise new investments in green enterprises, climate mitigation, tech start-ups, and climate adaptation.
11. Work together on trilateral development co-operation, including on sustainable, climate smart innovation, and building on success stories such as Digital Public Infrastructure and digital governance.
12. Enhance mutual growth in creative and cultural industries through collaborative research, high-level bilateral engagement, capacity building, collaborations between leading institutions, and inclusive platforms like a series of India-UK ‘Creative Economy Weeks’. Implement the Programme of Culture Cooperation Agreement to promote economic growth and opportunities through innovation, entrepreneurship, and enhanced investment in cultural goods and services.

Technology and innovation

This strategic partnership will accelerate innovation-led growth and strengthen both nations’ roles in shaping the technologies of tomorrow. The United Kingdom and India will harness the power of technology, science, research and innovation to shape a secure, sustainable, and prosperous future.

Building on the UK-India Technology Security Initiative, the Science and Innovation Council, and the Health and Lifesciences partnership, the 2 sides will deepen collaboration in critical and emerging technologies, health, and clean energy, driving breakthroughs that enhance national resilience, unlock trade and investment, and create high value jobs. To further this collaboration, both sides will:

1. Boost research and innovation by harnessing the UK-India Research & Innovation Corridor. Uniting efforts to boost research and innovation productivity by integrating our eco-systems and creating partnerships across people and programmes, such as catapults, innovation hubs, start-ups, incubators, research and innovation supergroups and accelerator programmes.
2. Harness together, the benefits of the global AI revolution and boost economic growth through a UK-India joint centre for AI that will promote trusted real world AI innovations and widespread adoption. Collaborate to create open source solutions that may be leveraged by UK and India business to create and scale impactful AI solutions.
3. Advance next generation, secure-by-design telecommunications through joint research, development and innovation, strategically collaborating on advanced connectivity and cyber resilience. Establish an India-UK Connectivity Innovation Centre to drive digital inclusion and enhance connectivity across both our countries. Work together at international fora like ITU and 3GPP for 6G.
4. Secure resilient and sustainable critical mineral supply chains to power the Fourth Industrial Revolution. Establish a UK-India Joint Industry Guild on Critical Minerals, to transform financing standards and innovation. Together, the 2 sides will prioritise processing, R&D, recycling, managing risk to supply chains and market development and will champion circular economy principles and advance traceability.
5. Use the UK-India biotechnology partnership to unlock the potential of biomanufacturing, bio-based materials and advanced biosciences and drive innovation across health, clean energy and sustainable agriculture. Tackle global health challenges and strengthen our health systems by application of cutting-edge innovation, including biofoundries, biomanufacturing, bioprinting, femtech and cell and gene therapies.
6. Drive innovation-led growth through the TSI in the fields of semiconductors, quantum, advanced materials, and cyber security.
7. Bring together our respective space communities to explore collaboration in space research and innovation, and commercial opportunities.
8. Strengthen UK-India leadership in global health security to prevent future pandemics and safeguard resilient medical supply chains. The Health and Life Sciences Joint Working Group will advance joint action on pandemic preparedness, digital health, One Health, and antimicrobial resistance, and enhancing co-operation to respond to emerging threats. Together both sides will build robust, agile supply chains and work towards greater collaboration between regulatory frameworks to enable rapid development, production and deployment of vaccines, therapeutics, and medical technologies, protecting lives and strengthening global resilience.
9. Advance strategic trade and economic collaboration between the UK and India to drive shared prosperity, supply chain resilience and security. Hold regular Strategic Export & Technology Cooperation Dialogues to address licensing and export controls issues, unlocking and enabling high-value trade in critical, emerging and other high-end technologies, including in the defence, security and aerospace sectors.

Defence and security

The strengthening of India-UK defence partnership leads to a safer international environment and reinforced national security. The complementary strengths of India and UK defence industry provide excellent opportunities for collaboration. Both sides have agreed on expanding engagements with armed forces and advancing defence capability collaboration, and agree to:

1. Promote strategic and defence industry collaboration through the adoption of a 10-year Defence Industrial Roadmap and a joint mechanism at senior official level to monitor its implementation and progress.
2. Deepen collaboration in advanced technologies and complex weapons, supporting innovation and co-development, through co-operation programs such as the Electric Propulsion Capability Partnership (EPCP) and Jet Engine Advanced Core Technologies (JEACT).
3. Strengthen coordination on strategic and operational defence matters by upgrading the existing Foreign and Defence 2+2 senior official level dialogue to next higher level.
4. Enhance co-operation under the Indo-Pacific Oceans’ Initiative (IPOI), through establishing a Regional Maritime Security Centre of Excellence (RMSCE) to build capacity and resilience across the Indian Ocean on non-traditional maritime security threats.
5. Enhance interoperability and readiness by continuing to conduct military joint exercises and expanding training opportunities across all 3 services. Position military instructors in each other’s training institutions. Reaffirm India as a regional hub for sustainment of logistics support to UK armed forces presence in the Indian Ocean Region.
6. Strengthen research and development on developing new capabilities, including in underwater systems and direct energy weapons; and develop relationships with academia.
7. Condemn terrorism in all its forms and manifestations. Strengthen international co-operation to combat terrorism in a comprehensive and sustained manner, in accordance with the UN Charter and international law. Counter radicalisation and violent extremism; combat financing of terrorism and the cross-border movement of terrorists; prevent exploitation of new and emerging technologies for terrorist purposes; tackle terrorist recruitment; strengthen bilateral and multilateral co-operation in these spheres, including in information sharing, judicial co-operation, capacity building. Strengthen co-operation to take decisive and concerted actions against globally proscribed terrorists, terror entities and their sponsors.
8. Protect citizens from transnational organised crime, including terrorism, cyber-crime and illicit financial flows through a shared understanding of criminal threats, co-operation in justice and law enforcement and sharing best practice to stop criminals and uphold the rule of law.
9. Build cyber resilience by enhancing our mutual understanding and sharing best practices on responding to cyber security threats and protecting citizens and key services. Promote growth through support and opportunities for cyber security companies; collaboration on cyber and digital governance; and partnership under TSI on secure development of emerging technologies.
10. Reaffirm co-operation in security and curbing irregular migration, including through implementing in full the Migration and Mobility Partnership. Together, India and the UK aim to prevent exploitation by criminal organisations and to safeguard the UK-India living bridge, which reflects the enduring ties between our people.

Climate and clean energy

Partnership on climate action exemplifies our shared commitment to sustainable, resilient development and protecting the planet. Collaboration on climate change action will help achieve India and UK’s respective ambitious net zero goals, providing leadership on the global climate agenda. It will support trade and investment in green goods and services and increase green manufacturing. The partnership on clean energy and climate will:

1. Mobilise timely, adequate and affordable finance for climate action in India. We will collaborate on reforming global financial systems towards better, bigger and more effective multilateral development banks (MDBs) to enable scaling up of affordable finance for climate action by developing countries.
2. Drive ambitious energy security and clean energy goals, including collaboration on energy storage and grid transformation; working towards a taskforce between the UK’s Office of Gas and Electricity Markets (OFGEM) and India’s Central Electricity Regulatory Commission (CERC); forming the India–UK Offshore Wind Taskforce; the development of the Carbon Credit Trading Scheme (CCTS) to push forwards low carbon pathways for industry; advancing civil nuclear collaboration on nuclear security and waste and decommissioning, including engagement on the next generation nuclear technologies such as small modular reactors under an enhanced India-UK Nuclear Cooperation Agreement. Throughout, UK-India energy collaboration will seize opportunities in the private and public sectors and support the creation of robust supply chains.
3. Accelerate scalable innovations for green growth and a sustainable and prosperous future by deepening collaboration across clean transport, energy, and life sciences, while advancing joint work on AI, renewables, hydrogen, energy storage, batteries, and carbon capture. Jointly support entrepreneurs through the flagship Net Zero Innovation Partnership to develop deep tech solutions to address climate change and to build new markets for growth.
4. Collaborate and exchange best practices to reduce vulnerabilities to climate change and enhance resilient growth by strengthening adaptation planning, mobilising finance, fostering technologies, and scaling up disaster preparedness. Together, the 2 sides will lead global scientific action on climate resilience and biodiversity with a focus on early warning systems, marine ecosystems and blue carbon.
5. Co-operate on restoring nature and sustainable land use, including via collaboration on agroforestry and forest products traceability under the India-UK Forest Partnership.
6. Strengthen co-operation on climate and energy transition through deepened collaboration on the International Solar Alliance, Coalition for Disaster Resilient Infrastructure, One Sun One World One Grid (OSOWOG), Road Transport Breakthrough, Zero Emission Vehicle Transition Council (ZEVTC). Explore possibilities for working together through the Global Clean Power Alliance (GCPA).

Education

The education systems of the UK and India and the rich exchange between our peoples and cultures underpin all other areas of our collaboration. The UK is among India’s preferred partners in delivering mutual growth and impact under India’s National Education Policy 2020 and through the Programme of Cultural Cooperation signed in May 2025. People-to-people relations are the golden thread of the India-UK partnership.

Building on strong foundations, the intellectual partnership between India and the UK will be responsive to emerging opportunities, adapt to the rapid advancement of technology, and strengthen collaboration in education and research. It will create a skilled and forward-looking talent pool, ready to address global challenges and contribute to a safe and sustainable future for all. Both sides will:

1. Set strategic direction for our educational links, through an Annual Ministerial India-UK Education Dialogue that will drive new areas of collaboration and deepen our education partnerships. Both sides will work together to review mutually recognised qualifications and share knowledge through participating in events and programmes such as the Education World Forum in the UK and National Education Policy platforms in India.
2. Encourage the opening of international branch campuses of leading UK universities and institutions in India and transnational education partnerships for delivering joint and dual degree courses in critical subject areas, boosting the future economies of both countries.
3. Invest in young people and provide them with skills for the future, via an India-UK Green Skills Partnership which will bring together Indian and UK expertise, identify and bridge skill gaps in both countries, and establish joint activities that are mutually beneficial, sustainable, create growth opportunities and positive environmental impacts. Continue to implement our existing India-UK MoU on Mutual Recognition of Qualifications.
4. Encourage exchange and understanding among youth and students, working in partnership across all sectors to promote and maximise the success of existing schemes such as Young Professionals Scheme and Study India Programme.