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Keir Starmer has asserted that the truce deal in Gaza "would not have occurred without President Trump's leadership," but avoided supporting the US president for a Nobel peace prize.

Ceasefire Deal Welcomed as a "Welcome Development to the Globe"

The prime minister commented that the initial stage of the deal would be a "relief to the world" and highlighted that the UK had played its own role behind the scenes with the US and negotiators.

Addressing the media on the last day of his trade visit to India, the British leader stressed that the deal "must now be implemented in full, without delay, and paired with the prompt removal of all restrictions on critical humanitarian aid to Gaza."

Nobel Prize Inquiry Addressed

But, when questioned if the Nobel committee should at this time grant Trump the prestigious award, Starmer implied that time was required to determine if a durable peace could be achieved.

"The priority now is to press on and implement this ... my attention now is transitioning this from the phase it's at now ... and make a success of this, because that matters to me more than anything else," he told reporters at a press conference in Mumbai.

Business Deals Revealed During Trip to India

Starmer has hailed a series of agreements sealed during his tour to India – his first time there – accompanied by over a hundred executives and arts figures. The visit marks the passing of the countries' trade pact.

• No 10 has announced a slew of investments, from fintech to university campuses, as well as the production of multiple Indian movies in the United Kingdom.
• On the final day, Starmer finalized a military agreement worth £350 million for UK missiles, manufactured in the UK region, to be deployed by the Indian military.

"Our history together is deep, the personal ties between our people are exceptionally strong," he remarked as he left the city. "Expanding upon our historic trade deal, we are remaking this partnership for our times."

Digital Identification Initiative Studied

The Prime Minister has spent time in Mumbai analyzing the national digital identification program, including meeting key figures who developed the widespread system used by over a billion individuals for benefits, transactions, and verification.

He hinted that the United Kingdom was interested in expanding the application of digital ID beyond making it mandatory to prove rights to work. He indicated that the UK would eventually look at connecting it to financial and transaction networks – on a voluntary basis – as well as for administrative tasks such as mortgage and school applications.

"It has been adopted on a voluntary basis [in India] in massive scale, not least because it means that you can access your own funds, conduct transactions so much more conveniently than is possible with others," he explained.

"The efficiency with which it allows citizens here to utilize facilities, particularly banking options, is something that was acknowledged in our talks yesterday, and in fact a Fintech discussion that we had as well. So we're examining those instances of how digital identification helps people with processes that often take too long and are too cumbersome and makes them easier for them."

Public Support for Changes

The Prime Minister admitted that the government had to make the case for the reforms to the British public, which have plummeted in popularity since Starmer proposed them.

"In my view now we need to go out and advocate for the significant advantages ... And I think that the greater number of individuals see the benefits that accompany this ... as has happened in other countries, people say: 'That will simplify my daily routine,' and consequently I want to get on with it," he stated.

Human Rights and Global Affairs Discussed

The Prime Minister said he had raised a number of difficult topics with the Indian leader regarding human rights and relations with the Russian Federation, though he appeared to have made minimal progress. He confirmed that he and Prime Minister Modi discussed how India was persisting to buy Russian oil, which is facing widespread western sanctions.

"For prime minister Modi and myself the priority on ending this situation and the multiple measures will be taken to that end," he said. "This included a wide range of discussion, but we did set out the steps that we are taking in regarding energy."

Starmer also mentioned he had raised the case of the UK-based activist the individual, from Dumbarton, who has been detained in an Indian jail for almost a decade without facing a full trial. It is frequently mentioned as one of the worst examples of injustice among Britons currently detained abroad.

But, he did not suggest much advancement had been achieved. "Yes, we did raise the consular cases," he stated. "We always raise them when we have the opportunity to do so. I should say that the foreign secretary is scheduled to meet the relatives in the near future, as well as raising it now."

Future Plans

The prime minister is widely expected to take a comparable trade-focused visit to the People's Republic of China in the next 12 months as part of a effort to improve diplomatic ties between the UK and the Asian nation.

That relationship is under the spotlight because of the collapse of a espionage investigation, reportedly occurring because the UK has been unwilling to provide fresh evidence that the country is considered a threat.

Starmer said the UK was eager to pursue other trading relationships but stated that a trade deal with the nation was not currently planned. "It is not a priority, for a bilateral pact as such, but our position is to cooperate where we are able, challenge where we must, and this has been the ongoing approach of the government in regarding China."