HMS Monmouth is pictured with the Indian aircraft carrier INS Vikramaditya during the vessels transit through the English Channel.

The 4,900 tonne frigate met up with the newest Indian aircraft carrier  – weighing in at a massive 45,000 tonnes and helped her safely through the busy English Channel.
 
Originally built for the Russian Navy as a modified Kiev class aircraft carrier, called Baku in 1987, India procured her in 2004 and she was accepted by the Indian Navy in a commissioning ceremony in November 2013.  

Following successful sea trials in July 2013 and aviation trials in September 2013 the carrier began her long journey to her new home of India escorted by auxiliary INS Deepak and Talwar class frigate INS Trikand.


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© Crown Copyright 2013
Photographer: LA(PHOT) Dean Nixon
Image 45156377.jpg from www.defenceimages.mod.uk Courtesy: South Asian Voices
6 April 2023

The U.K.’s Indo-Pacific push

The UK has been admitted to the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership or CPTPP, a significant step forward for its efforts in achieving its Brexit goals. The benefits will be more strategic than economic, as it gives the UK a place in the new ‘Atlantic-Pacific’ region.

india-uk-istock-1152442-1665421302 Courtesy: Deccan Herald
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UK-India FTA Negotiations: Contentious Issues, Potential Solutions

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TTIP Courtesy: openDemocracy / Flickr
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India’s lurking TTIP challenge

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Circles & Corridors of Economic Diplomacy

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lngfinal Courtesy: Pline/Wikimedia Commons
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Multiplying India’s LNG options

India’s domestic demand for natural gas is only growing. Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s is looking to convince the U.S. government to sell LNG to India by exempting it from the requirement of a compulsory Free Trade Agreement (FTA) during his September trip. Another source for LNG for India can be Russia which is currently facing western sanctions and is looking to Asia as a gas export destination. India can benefit from both