Starmer Praises President Trump's Gaza Truce Agreement – However Stops Short of Nobel Prize Endorsement

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

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

Starmer commented that the initial stage of the agreement 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.

Addressing the media on the final day of his trade visit to India, Starmer emphasized that the deal "needs to be put into action in full, without postponement, and paired with the immediate lifting of all restrictions on critical humanitarian aid to Gaza."

Nobel Prize Question Addressed

But, when questioned if the Nobel committee should now grant Trump the coveted prize, the Prime Minister implied that time was required to know if a longer lasting peace could be attained.

"The priority now is to move forward and execute this ... my focus now is moving this from the stage it's at now ... and make a success of this, because that is important to me more than anything else," he told reporters at a media briefing in India's financial capital.

Business Deals Announced During India Visit

Starmer has celebrated a number of deals sealed during his visit to the country – his maiden visit there – accompanied by 126 business leaders and cultural leaders. The visit marks the passing of the two nations' trade pact.

• No 10 has announced a range of financial commitments, from financial technology to higher education facilities, as well as the production of multiple Indian movies in the UK.
• On the final day, the Prime Minister finalized a defence deal worth £350 million for UK missiles, manufactured in Northern Ireland, to be deployed by the Indian military.

"The shared history is deep, the personal ties between our citizens are exceptionally strong," Starmer remarked as he left Mumbai. "Building on our landmark agreement, we are reinventing this partnership for our times."

Digital Identification Initiative Examined

Starmer has spent time in Mumbai analyzing the national digital identification program, including consulting key figures who designed the comprehensive platform used by more than 1 billion people for social services, transactions, and verification.

He suggested that the UK was considering broadening the scope of digital ID beyond making it compulsory to prove rights to work. He proposed that the UK would in time look at connecting it to banking and transaction networks – on a optional basis – as well as for official procedures such as mortgage and educational enrollments.

"It has been adopted on a optional basis [in India] in massive scale, partly because it means that you can retrieve your own money, make payments so much more easily than is possible with others," he noted.

"The speed with which it enables citizens here to utilize facilities, especially financial services, is something that was recognized in our discussions recently, and actually a financial technology discussion that we had as well. So we're looking at those instances of how digital identification helps individuals with procedures that often take excessive time and are too cumbersome and makes them easier for them."

Popular Backing for Changes

Starmer acknowledged that the administration had to make the case for the initiatives to the UK citizens, which have declined sharply in public approval since he proposed them.

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

Rights Issues and Global Affairs Discussed

Starmer confirmed he had raised a number of difficult topics with the Indian leader regarding civil liberties and relations with Russia, though he seemed to have made little headway. He acknowledged that he and Modi talked about how the country was persisting to buy oil from Russia, which is subject to widespread western sanctions.

"For prime minister Modi and myself the focus on resolving this situation and the multiple measures will be taken to that purpose," he commented. "And that was a broad spectrum of discussion, but we did set out the steps that we are undertaking in relation to energy."

Starmer additionally mentioned he had brought up the situation of the UK-based activist the individual, from Scotland, who has been held in an Indian prison for nearly eight years without facing a complete legal process. It is often cited as one of the most egregious cases of unfair treatment among Britons currently detained abroad.

But, he did not indicate much progress had been made. "Indeed, we did raise the consular cases," he said. "We always raise them when we have the opportunity to do so. I must add that the foreign secretary is meeting the families in the near future, as well as discussing it now."

Future Plans

Starmer is largely anticipated to take a similar business-oriented visit to China in the coming year as part of a mission to improve relations between the UK and China.

This bilateral connection is receiving attention because of the collapse of a Chinese spying case, said to have happened because the UK has been reluctant to provide fresh evidence that China is deemed a security risk.

The Prime Minister clarified the United Kingdom was keen to explore other trading relationships but stated that a trade deal with the nation was not on the agenda. "That's not on our list, for a bilateral pact as such, but our stance is to work together where we can, challenge where we must, and this has been the ongoing approach of the government in regarding China."