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The Prime Minister has stated that the Gaza ceasefire agreement "would not have occurred without the leadership of Donald Trump," but avoided supporting the American leader for a Nobel peace prize.

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

The prime minister commented that the initial stage of the deal would be a "welcome news globally" and highlighted that the UK had played its own role behind the scenes with the United States and mediators.

Speaking on the final day of his business trip to the Indian subcontinent, the British leader stressed that the deal "must now be implemented in full, without postponement, and paired with the prompt removal of all limitations on critical humanitarian aid to Gaza."

Nobel Prize Inquiry Addressed

However, when questioned if the Nobel committee should at this time award Donald Trump the coveted award, the Prime Minister implied that time was needed to know if a longer lasting peace could be attained.

"What matters now is to move forward and implement this ... my focus now is moving this from the phase it's at now ... and make a success of this, because that is important to me more than anything else," he stated at a press conference in India's financial capital.

Business Deals Revealed During Trip to India

Starmer has celebrated a number of deals sealed during his visit to the country – his first time there – accompanied by over a hundred executives and cultural leaders. The visit signifies the implementation of the countries' free trade agreement.

• The UK government has announced a slew of investments, from financial technology to higher education facilities, as well as the production of multiple Indian movies in the United Kingdom.
• On Thursday, Starmer finalized a military agreement worth £350m for British-made missiles, manufactured in Northern Ireland, to be used by the Indian military.

"The shared history is profound, the human connections between our people are truly special," Starmer remarked as he left the city. "Expanding upon our historic trade deal, we are remaking this partnership for our era."

Digital Identification Initiative Examined

The Prime Minister has spent time in India studying the Indian digital ID system, including meeting key figures who developed the widespread system utilized by more than 1 billion people for benefits, payments, and verification.

He hinted that the United Kingdom was interested in broadening the scope of digital ID beyond making it compulsory to verify eligibility to work. He indicated that the Britain would eventually look at linking it to financial and payments systems – on a voluntary basis – as well as for administrative tasks such as mortgage and educational enrollments.

"It has been adopted on a optional basis [in India] in huge numbers, partly because it ensures that you can retrieve your own funds, make payments so much more conveniently than is available with alternative methods," he explained.

"The efficiency with which it allows citizens here to utilize facilities, particularly financial services, is something that was acknowledged in our discussions yesterday, and in fact a Fintech discussion that we had as well. So we're looking at those examples of how digital identification assists individuals with processes that often take excessive time and are overly complex and simplifies them for them."

Popular Backing for Reforms

Starmer admitted that the government had to build public support for the initiatives to the UK citizens, which have declined sharply in public approval since Starmer proposed them.

"I think now we need to go out and make that case the huge benefits ... And I think that the greater number of individuals see the benefits that accompany this ... as has happened in different nations, 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 brought up a range of challenging issues with the Indian leader regarding human rights and relations with Russia, though he seemed to have made little headway. He confirmed that he and Prime Minister Modi talked about how India was persisting to purchase oil from Russia, which is subject to extensive international restrictions.

"For prime minister Modi and myself the focus on resolving this situation and the various steps will be implemented to that end," he commented. "This included a wide range of discussion, but we did set out the actions that we are undertaking in relation to energy."

Starmer additionally mentioned he had brought up the case of the British Sikh activist Jagtar Singh Johal, from Scotland, who has been detained in an Indian jail for nearly eight years without facing a complete legal process. It is often cited as one of the worst examples of unfair treatment among Britons still held overseas.

But, Starmer did not indicate much progress had been made. "Yes, we did raise the consular cases," he stated. "We always raise them when we have the chance to do so. I should say that the top diplomat is meeting the relatives in coming weeks, as well as discussing it today."

Upcoming Initiatives

The prime minister is widely expected to take a similar trade-focused trip to China in the coming year as part of a mission to improve diplomatic ties between the UK and the Asian nation.

This bilateral connection is under the spotlight because of the collapse of a espionage investigation, reportedly occurring because the British authorities has been unwilling to provide new proof that China is deemed a security risk.

The Prime Minister clarified the UK was keen to pursue other trading relationships but emphasized that a trade deal with the nation was not currently planned. "That's not on our list, for a bilateral pact as such, but our position is to work together where we are able, challenge where we need to, and this has been the consistent policy of the administration in regarding China."