UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson's scheduled trip to India has been called off due to concerns over the COVID-19 situation in the country, Downing Street has said.

"In the light of the current coronavirus situation, Prime Minister Boris Johnson will not be able to travel to India next week," said a joint statement from the British and Indian governments, released by Johnson's office, "Instead, Prime Ministers Modi and Johnson will speak later this month to agree and launch their ambitious plans for the future partnership between the UK and India."

The announcement came after India's total cases of COVID-19 exceeded 15 million. India will be added to the UK's travel-ban red list of countries from Friday.

(Cover: British Prime Minister Boris Johnson holds a news conference in Downing Street on the outcome of the Brexit negotiations, in London, Britain on December 24, 2020. /Reuters)