Prime Minister Narendra Modi will embark on a four-day visit to the United Kingdom and the Maldives starting Wednesday, July 23, aimed at finalising the much-awaited free trade deal with the former and strengthening bilateral ties and advancing key strategic partnerships.

During a weekly discussion, Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri also said that India and Maldives are in discussions to negotiate a free trade agreement and an investment treaty ahead of PM Modi’s visit to the South Asian nation.

The prime minister’s visit to the Maldives will take place on July 25 and 26. This would be PM Narendra Modi’s third visit to the Maldives.

“The Prime Minister’s visit to Maldives will take place on 25th and 26th July. He will be embarking on a state visit at the invitation of President Dr. Mohamed Muizzu of Maldives,” Vikram Misri said.

The countries are also discussing new areas of cooperation, including in renewable energy, Vikram Misri said.

He said, the prime minister will be the “guest of honour at celebrations to commemorate the 60th anniversary of the independence of the Maldives. This will be Prime Minister’s third visit to Maldives, and the first state visit of a head of government that President Muizzu is hosting since he assumed office in November 2023.”

According to the foreign ministry, a major highlight of the UK leg of the visit will be the formalisation of the much-anticipated India-UK free trade agreement, which is expected to double the bilateral trade volume of USD 60 billion by 2030.

During the UK visit, PM Narendra Modi will hold wide-ranging discussions with his UK counterpart on the entire gamut of India-UK bilateral relations. They will also exchange views on issues of regional and global importance.

Speaking of the May agreement on the conclusion of the free trade agreement, the foreign secretary said, “There was conversation on the sixth of May, between the Prime Minister Modi and the Prime Minister of the UK, where an announcement had been made that the two sides had concluded negotiations on Free Trade Agreement and other issues. Since then, the two sides have been in very close touch with each other. We will update you on the final details related to this at the appropriate time.”