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The Prime Minister has declared that the truce deal in Gaza "would not have occurred without the leadership of Donald Trump," but stopped short of supporting the American leader for a Nobel peace prize.

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

Starmer 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 final day of his trade visit to the Indian subcontinent, Starmer emphasized that the deal "must now be implemented in full, without delay, and paired with the immediate lifting of all restrictions on critical humanitarian aid to Gaza."

Nobel Prize Question Answered

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

"The priority now is to move forward and implement this ... my attention now is transitioning this from the stage it's at now ... and make a success of this, because that is important to me above all," he told reporters at a press conference in India's financial capital.

Business Deals Revealed During India Visit

The Prime Minister has celebrated a number of deals sealed during his visit to India – his first time there – joined by 126 business leaders and cultural leaders. The visit marks the implementation of the two nations' trade pact.

• The UK government has announced a slew of investments, from financial technology to university campuses, as well as the making of multiple Indian movies in the UK.
• On Thursday, Starmer signed a military agreement worth £350m for UK missiles, produced in Northern Ireland, to be used by the Indian military.

"The shared history is profound, the human connections between our citizens are truly special," Starmer remarked as he departed the city. "Building on our landmark agreement, we are reinventing this alliance for our era."

Digital ID System Studied

Starmer has dedicated time in Mumbai analyzing the national digital identification program, including meeting principal architects who designed the comprehensive platform utilized by more than 1 billion people for benefits, transactions, and identification.

He hinted that the United Kingdom was considering expanding the application of digital identification beyond making it compulsory to verify eligibility to work. He indicated that the Britain would in time look at connecting it to financial and transaction networks – on a voluntary basis – as well as for official procedures such as home loan and educational enrollments.

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

"The speed with which it allows citizens here to utilize facilities, particularly financial services, is something that was acknowledged in our talks yesterday, and actually a financial technology conversation that we had today. So we're looking at those examples of how digital identification assists people with procedures that sometimes take excessive time and are overly complex and simplifies them for them."

Public Support for Reforms

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

"In my view now we need to go out and make that case the significant advantages ... And I believe that the more people see the positive outcomes that accompany this ... as has occurred in other countries, people say: 'That will simplify my daily routine,' and therefore I want to proceed with it," he stated.

Rights Issues and Global Affairs Addressed

Starmer said he had raised a range of challenging issues with the Indian leader regarding human rights and ties with the Russian Federation, though he appeared to have made minimal progress. Starmer confirmed that he and Prime Minister Modi talked about how the country was persisting to purchase Russian oil, which is facing widespread western sanctions.

"For both Prime Minister Modi and me the focus on ending this situation and the multiple measures will be taken to that end," he commented. "This included a wide range of dialogue, but we outlined the steps that we are undertaking in regarding energy."

Starmer also said he had brought up the case of the UK-based activist the individual, from Dumbarton, who has been held in an Indian jail for almost a decade without undergoing a full trial. It is often cited as one of the worst examples of injustice among UK nationals still held overseas.

But, he did not indicate much progress had been achieved. "Yes, we did raise the consular cases," he said. "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 discussing it now."

Future Plans

The prime minister is largely anticipated to take a similar business-oriented trip to the People's Republic of China in the coming year as part of a mission to improve relations between the United Kingdom and the Asian nation.

That relationship is under the spotlight because of the dismissal of a Chinese spying case, said to have happened because the UK has been unwilling to provide new proof that China is deemed a security risk.

Starmer said the United Kingdom was eager to explore other trading relationships but emphasized that a commercial agreement with the nation was not on the agenda. "That's not on our list, for a bilateral pact as such, but our position is to work together where we can, challenge where we need to, and this has been the consistent policy of the government in regarding China."