Boris Johnson will be Republic Day chief guest; here's why UK PM's visit holds significance

Prime Minister Boris Johnson has accepted India's invitation to be the chief guest at Republic Day on January 26, the second UK prime minister to attend the event after John Major in 1993.

It's official. British Prime Minister Boris Johnson has accepted India's "very generous" invite to be the Republic Day chief guest at Republic Day celebrations on January 26 in Delhi.

UK's Foreign Secretary called it "a great honour". The British PM said in a statement, "I am absolutely delighted to be visiting India next year at the start of an exciting year for Global Britain, and look forward to delivering the quantum leap in our bilateral relationship that Prime Minister (Narendra) Modi and I have pledged to achieve,"

India on Tuesday said that British Prime Minister Boris Johnson's presence at the Republic Day celebrations next month will be "symbolic of a new era". This will be Johnson's first major foreign visit since he took charge last year.

India's foreign minister S. Jaishankar said the British Prime Minister's presence at the Republic Day celebrations "would be in a way symbolic of a new era, and a new phase of India-UK ties."

The significance of British PM Boris Johnson's visit

It is after a gap of 27 years that a UK Prime Minister will be the chief guest at India's 70th Republic Day next month. John Major was the last British Prime Minister to attend the Republic Day parade in New Delhi in 1993.

The invitation from Modi is tactical and timely as the transition period for Brexit ends on December 31 and it's almost certain that the UK will go for a 'hard Brexit' - a clean break from Europe which will entail Britain giving up membership of the EU's single market, allowing it to trade freely with EU members without restrictions.

The hard Brexit is likely to disrupt UK's economy, which even after four years of the Brexit vote, is for most practical purposes still functioning as part of the EU. To reduce the adverse effects of economic disruption, the UK has been looking for trading opportunities elsewhere.

Prime Minister Johnson has offered a free trade agreement with India, given its huge market. Johnson's visit to New Delhi next month will be significant for trade negotiations between the two countries.