LONDON: The senior-most military officer in the United Kingdom's Armed Forces will visit India this week to reinforce the UK-India defence and security partnership.
The Chief of the Defence Staff (CDS), Air Chief Marshal Sir Stuart Peach GBE KCB ADC DL, will meet senior Indian ministers and defence officers under the umbrella of the Defence and International Security Partnership.
He had last visited India in April 2015 as the UK’s Vice Chief of the Defence Staff.
"I very much look forward to visiting India again. It is not only our shared history and democratic values that bind us together; but increasingly it is the threats and challenges to these values, that we face in an ever changing global environment, that bring us closer together, making the UK and India truly strategic defence partners," Sir Stuart said on the eve of his visit today.
"Whether standing shoulder to shoulder in countering terrorism and violent extremism, undertaking UN Peacekeeping operations, or forging ahead on developing advanced equipment programmes, the UK-India partnership is an enviable one internationally. I intend to ensure that my visit demonstrates further that the UK’s commitment to India and our relationship is undisputed, now and for the future," he said.
His meetings will cover the growing strategic defence ties through the recently established Capability Partnerships; the threat of terrorism and extremism faced globally; multinational cooperation; upcoming exercises, and UN Peacekeeping, the British High Commission in New Delhi said.
He will visit Delhi and Kolkata over four days this week, with full details of his itinerary not revealed.
Stuart will also pay his respects to the 74,000 Indians who served and died in the First World War by laying a wreath of marigolds at India Gate.
"The UK and India’s Armed Forces continue to benefit from a long-standing and close relationship. Both countries' Armed Forces are undergoing a transformation, and the learning experiences from each other in areas such as the joint aircraft carrier project, to combatting terrorism, to United Nations Peacekeeping, develops best practice between these global partners," an official UK statement said.
It added that the visit would complement and build upon that of the UK's Secretary of State for Defence, Sir Michael Fallon, who visited New Delhi in April this year.