National security adviser (NSA) Ajit Doval is set to meet his UK counterpart Tim Barrow in London for their annual strategic dialogue in the backdrop of a controversy brewing over a BBC documentary on the Gujarat riots that the Indian government has described as “propaganda”, and concern over parts of UK becoming a hub for the vestiges of the separatist Khalistan movement of the 1980s.
On his way back from an extremely positive dialogue with his US counterpart Jake Sullivan, Doval will be in London on February 3-4 for a candid dialogue with Barrow on the state of bilateral relationship, the global strategic environment with Ukraine war as the focus area, and the Indo-Pacific, people aware of the matter said. The two NSAs are also expected to exchange notes on terrorism emanating in the Af-Pak region and the overall situation in the Middle-East.
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India and the UK also working towards signing a crucial free trade agreement (FTA) this year at a time when India is the fastest-growing large economy in the world and Britain is among the weakest of the G-7 economies.
But, aside of the trade negotiations, there are concerns among the Indian security community that some elements at Whitehall are at odds with Prime Minister Rishi Sunak’s vision, and are working at cross purposes on matters related to the subcontinent with India and the UK not fully seeing eye to eye on Bangladesh, Pakistan, and Afghanistan.
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NSA Doval is expected to raise UK-based violent extremism in the context of Sikh radical groups operating from the UK, Pak Islamist groups opposed to India in Kashmir, and the fallout of the Citizenship (Amendment) Act. Though India has raised the issue of Sikh separatism in Britain through the highest intelligence levels, the security community feels that the UK government has not done enough to stop the funding of the Khalistan movement at radical gurudwaras in Britain.
Another area where the Indian establishment expects more support from Britain is on ending the shelter or safe haven granted to economic offenders such as Nirav Modi, Vijay Mallya, Sanjay Bhandari, and others. Though India and Britain have an extradition treaty, none of these fugitives has been sent back to India, with the matter hanging fire between the courts and Whitehall.
In the backdrop of these issues, people aware of the matter said, the conversation between Doval and Barrow is likely to be professional and businesslike, with India putting the onus on UK to make amends on some of these fronts.