Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi has experience in giving a fitting welcome to distinguished visitors.

When British Prime Minister Boris Johnson landed in India on Thursday, the streets were paved with large-format welcome signs.

Dancers, choirs and cheering spectators lined the sidewalk.

For the head of government, who has come under pressure because of the "Partygate" affair, it was certainly a welcome change.

Because on Thursday, the British House of Commons was supposed to vote on whether a committee of inquiry would review Johnson's statements about the parties during the strict corona lockdown in 2020, which was what happened.

Till Fähnders

Political correspondent for Southeast Asia.

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Instead of following the debate in London, the British Prime Minister visited the former ashram of Indian freedom hero Mahatma Gandhi in Gujarat, the home region of the Indian Prime Minister.

Johnson draped a shawl around a statue of Gandhi and sat at a wooden spinning wheel.

In his guest book entry, he thanked for the privilege of learning how Gandhi "used such simple principles as truth and non-violence to make the world a better place," according to Indian and British media.

One of the gifts Johnson received was a travel guide to London that Gandhi had written himself.

He then went to another university and met Indian entrepreneur and billionaire Gautam Adani.

Anger at India's 'neutral' stance on Russia

The political talks with Modi are only scheduled for this Friday, the second day of the trip, which has been postponed several times due to the pandemic.

By then at the latest it should be clear that the visit is not pure escapism.

Since the Russian army invaded Ukraine, the government in New Delhi has refrained from directly criticizing Moscow.

The "neutral" Indian stance is currently causing mild but growing irritation among the western allies.

This not only includes the fact that India has abstained from voting on all resolutions critical of Russia that have been passed in the various UN bodies.

New Delhi has also increased its oil imports from Russia, while European countries seek to reduce their dependence on Russian energy.

But India has so far reacted negatively to criticism of its attitude towards its old Russian allies.

During a visit to Washington, Foreign Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar even accused the West of hypocrisy.

He pointed out that the EU probably buys more Russian oil in one afternoon than India does in a month.

Because of these sensitivities, it was said before the trip that Johnson India would not be giving any "lectures".

Rather, the strategy should be to persuade India to move away from Russia through integration.

This is entirely in line with the British strategy, which intends to focus more on this growth region with a so-called “tilt” in the direction of the Indo-Pacific region.

It is also about economy and trade.

Since Brexit, Great Britain has also been looking for new sales markets in Asia.

According to announcements, investments and export deals worth a billion pounds were to be decided during Johnson's trip.

The British and their allies will also try to make India more independent from Moscow through arms deals.

Russia is India's largest arms supplier.

But New Delhi is also increasingly buying armaments from the United States, France and Israel.

Britain could strengthen its position in this lucrative market.

With the “Schwenk”, London is also placing the strategic focus on the Indo-Pacific.

British ships cross the South China Sea.

The United Kingdom has joined one of the region's multilateral forums with the AUKUS Security Pact, which also includes the United States and Australia.

Along with the United States, Japan and Australia, India belongs to the so-called Quad Group, which cooperates on security policy.

Especially in dealing with China's growing power, synergies can definitely be found between India and the West.