British Prime Minister David Cameron on Tuesday said his Indian counterpart Narenda Modi’s “extraordinary visit" to the United Kingdom would help build a modern partnership between the two countries to fight challenges such as poverty, climate change, unemployment and terrorism, the Press Trust of India reported. Cameron said he was excited by the visit and what Modi is doing in India, and that the two countries “have very close ties and a very strong past together”. He added that the future the two countries can have together is very important. “We both face so many of the same challenges, whether it is fighting terrorism and Islamist extremism, which has done so much damage to India and to Britain,” he said.

The Indian Prime Minister is due to visit the UK on Thursday for three days, and will address 60,000 people at Wembley stadium as well as meet the Queen of England as part of his events there. His visit has come under criticism from opposition parties after the Bharatiya Janata Party lost in the Bihar elections, and has been opposed by sections of the public as well.