Trade talks between India and Britain are set to continue this year, according to officials responding to a report in a British newspaper that claimed
India had suspended talks after London failed to condemn Sikh separatists. An Indian foreign ministry official says,
stated that progress in trade talks and concerns around Sikh separatist activities in Britain should not be linked. Meanwhile, a diplomatic official in the British High Commission in New Delhi confirmed that trade talks would continue in a scheduled manner and that security officials in London were addressing India's concerns. The demand for an independent Sikh state of "Khalistan" has been revived in certain sections of the Sikh population in India and overseas, and has led to protests and vandalism outside Indian missions in London, the US and Canada. However, a spokesperson for Britain's Department for Business and Trade affirmed the commitment of both nations to delivering an ambitious and mutually beneficial free trade agreement (FTA).
