By Inderjit Badhwar
There are moments in a nation’s journey that act as silent catalysts—neither dramatic in their announcement nor explosive in their immediate consequences, but historic in their long-term impact. The India-UK Free Trade Agreement, signed last week, is one such moment.
In an age marked by supply chain disruptions, tariff skirmishes, and rising protectionism, this agreement is more than a bilateral pact between two old democracies. It is a declaration. A strategic move that transcends traditional trade calculus, speaking to a deeper reconfiguration of how countries, especially emerging powers like India, are asserting their place in a fractured global order.
This edition’s cover story, Deal of the Decade? unpacks the scope, symbolism, and stakes of this landmark trade agreement—India’s first with a major Western power since its 1991 liberalisation, and arguably its most nuanced. This is not liberalisation born out of desperation, as it was in the early ’90s, but one born of confidence, leverage, and long-term ambition. India is no longer knocking at the doors of global markets—it is negotiating its entry on its own terms.
The agreement’s technical merits are evident. Nearly 99 percent of India’s export tariff lines—including textiles, leather goods, engineering products, and seafood—will now enjoy duty-free access to the UK. MSMEs, the lifeblood of India’s manufacturing ecosystem, stand to benefit from new demand and fresh investment. A streamlined visa regime and mutual recognition of qualifications offer Indian professionals access to one of the world’s most sophisticated services economies. British investments are already flowing in, promising both capital and technology transfer.
But what makes this story worthy of a cover is not just what is in the agreement—it is what the agreement represents.
For decades, India’s approach to global trade was marked by a cautious realism—an understandable wariness rooted in the fear that free trade might compromise domestic interests, especially in agriculture and small-scale manufacturing. Past negotiations with the EU, the US, and the RCEP bloc have collapsed under the weight of such sensitivities. What has changed in 2025 is not just India’s economic strength, but its strategic clarity.
This agreement shows that India can protect its vulnerabilities while projecting its capabilities. It has held firm on red lines—avoiding controversial intellectual property concessions, preserving its pharmaceutical edge, and keeping the UK’s proposed carbon levies out of the deal—while signalling openness in areas that strengthen its global integration: services, mobility, data governance, and investment facilitation.
Equally significant is the deal’s symbolism for the United Kingdom. Post-Brexit Britain has been searching for trade partners to fill the vacuum left by its EU exit. India, with its massive market, skilled workforce, and growing geopolitical heft, was the ideal partner. In many ways, the FTA is as much a diplomatic reset as it is an economic one—bringing two Commonwealth giants into a new phase of strategic interdependence.
Internationally, the deal lands at a moment when multilateralism is under strain. The World Trade Organization (WTO) remains gridlocked. The US-China trade war continues to send aftershocks across global markets. Trade has become political, and supply chains ideological. In this climate, the India-UK agreement sends a clear and reassuring signal: that rules-based trade, anchored in mutual interest and modern realities, is still possible—and profitable.
This is the message that resonates most strongly in our editorial room. That amid rising walls, India and the UK have chosen bridges. That in a world of short-termism, this deal looks to the long game. And that for developing nations looking to climb the value chain, strategic trade liberalisation is not a capitulation—it’s a pathway to competitiveness.
Of course, the journey is not without friction. Domestic stakeholders in India have voiced concerns—especially in the liquor and automobile sectors, where import duties will be eased over time. Critics argue that India’s decision to allow access to its public procurement market could undercut local industry. But the government’s position is clear: calibrated openness is no longer a threat, it is a necessity.
Perhaps the most striking parallel is with the reforms of 1991. Then, India opened up under duress. Today, it does so with deliberation. Where the former was about survival, this is about strategy. Where once we feared foreign competition, we now seek it—on our terms, with our strengths.
This edition does not seek to glorify the agreement or ignore its limitations. Rather, it recognises the moment for what it is: a pivot point. A chance to reimagine India not merely as a participant in global trade, but as a rule-shaper. A nation whose economic engagement is not transactional, but transformational.
In the pages that follow, we explore not just the mechanics of the deal, but the meanings behind it. We look at who benefits, who remains wary, and how this FTA fits into the larger puzzle of India’s economic diplomacy.
Because in a world where global trade is no longer just about containers and customs duties—but about climate, technology, mobility, and influence—India has just made its biggest move in decades.
And the world is watching.