Modi in Europe LIVE: PM arrives in Paris, to meet counterpart Emmanuel Macron

Prime Minister Narendra Modi, on the final leg of his three nation Europe visit, arrived in France on Wednesday. He was welcomed by an enthuse Indian diaspora in Paris.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday left for France after concluding his "productive" visit to Denmark during which he held a series of bilateral meetings with his counterparts from Nordic countries and attended the second India-Nordic summit.

"After a productive Denmark visit, PM @narendramodi emplanes for Paris," the Prime Minister’s Office tweeted.

"Strengthened bilateral ties with Denmark. Enhanced collaborations with the Nordic countries and the region. PM @narendramodi's visit to Copenhagen concludes. PM Modi now leaves for Paris to hold talks with the French President @EmmanuelMacron," Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) spokesperson Arindam Bagchi tweeted.

India’s partnership with Nordic region in the Arctic Region was discussed. PM noted that India’s Arctic Policy provides a good framework for expansion of India-Nordic cooperation in the Arctic region. He invited sovereign wealth funds of Nordic countries to invest in India, MEA said.

During the Summit, the PMs focused their discussions on key issues related to intn'l peace &security, inclconflict in Ukraine, multilateral cooperation, green transition & climate change, the blue economy, innovation and digitalisation, says Joint Statement- 2nd India-Nordic Summit.

The PMs expressed their serious concern about the ongoing humanitarian crisis in Ukraine. They unequivocally condemned civilian deaths in Ukraine. They reiterated the need for an immediate cessation of hostilities, it said.

They discussed the destabilizing effect of the conflict in Ukraine and its broader regional and global implications. Both sides agreed to remain closely engaged on the issue, it added.

PM Modi gifts a Pashmina stole in a Papier Mache box from J&K to PM of Sweden, Magdalena Andersson. Kashmiri Pashmina Stoles have been treasured for their rare material, exquisite craftsmanship & reminiscent designs since time immemorial.

Pashmina is an exclusive art of Union Territory of Kashmir, India which is known for producing for one of the finest Pashmina stoles. The wool used for making Pashmina stoles comes from a special breed of Kashmiri goat found in the high-altitude regions of the Himalayas.

The Pashmina stole is packed in a Kashmir Papier Mache box which is handcrafted & coloured. The piece is hand-painted in a floral design depicting flora and fauna of Kashmir valley. The design used in this piece is intricate pattern drawn with fine thin brush.

Water-based colours and natural pigments have been used in this piece. Pure gold foil and paint has been used in the design which imparts a royal look to the piece. Finally, the piece is coated with lacquer which protects it from water and gives extra durability.

PM Modi gifts a wall hanging with Kutch embroidery to PM of Denmark, Mette Frederiksen. Kutch Embroidery is a handicraft & textile signature art tradition of tribal community of Kutch, Gujarat. This with its rich designs has made a notable contribution to Indian embroidery traditions.

Embroidery is generally done on cotton fabric, in form of net using silk or cotton threads of myriad hues. Certain patterns are also crafted over silk & satin. The stitches adopted are "square chain, double buttonhole, pattern darning, running stitch, satin and straight stitches."

The signature effect of the colorful embroidery sparkles when small mirrors called ‘abhla’ are sewn over the geometrically shaped designs.

PM Modi gifts a Silver Meenakari Bird figure from Varanasi to Crown Princess of Denmark, Mary. The art of silver enameling practiced in Benaras (Varanasi) is almost 500 years old. The art has its roots in Persian art of Meenakari.

The most distinguishing element of Banaras meenakari is use of pink colour in various shades on various products. The base is silver sheet, which is fixed on a metallic base. The sheet fixed on base mould is beaten lightly to get a fitting form of the mould.

The preliminary product is taken off in spliced form the mould and is deftly joined. On this, a design is worked on with a metallic pen. The ‘Meena’ is ground to a fine powder and mixed with pomegranate seeds in water.

Thereafter, it is fixed on various parts of the product with a flat metallic tool called ‘qalam’. The finished product is decorated with semi-precious stones and pearls.

PM Modi gifts a Brass Tree of Life from Rajasthan to PM of Finland, Sanna Marin. The Tree of Life symbolizes development and growth of life. The branches of a tree grow and develop upwards and contain various life forms representing inclusiveness.

This hand-crafted wall decorative art piece depicting 'Tree of Life' is made of brass & is an example of the excellent craftsmanship & rich tradition of India. The roots of the tree represent connection with the earth, leaves & birds represent life & candle stand represents light.

PM Modi gifts Dhaal with Koftgiri art from Rajasthan to PM of Norway, Jonas Gahr Støre. Tarkashi (Koftgiri) on metal is a traditional art of Rajasthan in India as a means of decorating Arms and Armour.

Today it has been diverted to the decoration of objects such as picture frames, boxes, walking sticks and decorative swords, daggers and war accessories like shields. Koftgiri is the inlay work with silver and gold wires.

Koftgiri craft is intended to enrich the surface of the metal of which the article is made. The base metal is a mixture of three types of Iron (soft, hard and high).

Layers of 3 types of iron are hammered till completely mixed&base metal is made then blades in different shapes are made out of it&this blade is dipped into a solution of 3 herbs which brings out the design engraved on blade.Finally blade is rubbed & polished with very fine paper.

PM Modi also presented a Rogan painting from Gujarat to Queen Margrethe II of Denmark. Rogan painting is art of cloth printing practiced in Kutch, Gujarat. In this craft, paint made from boiled oil & vegetable dyes is laid down on fabric using either a metal block (printing) or a stylus (painting).

The craft nearly died out in the late 20th century, with Rogan painting being practiced by only one family. The word ‘Rogan’ comes from Persian, meaning varnish or oil. The process of applying this oil-based paint to fabric began among the Khatris, a community in Kutch, Gujarat.

The process of making Rogan painting is very laborious and skillful. Artists place a small amount of this paint paste into their palms. At room temperature, the paint is carefully twisted into motifs and images using a metal rod that never comes in contact with the fabric.

Next, the artisan folds his designs into a blank fabric, thereby printing its mirror image.

PM gifts a Dokra boat from Chattisgarh to Crown Prince Fredrik of Denmark. Dokra is non–ferrous metal casting using the lost-wax casting technique. This sort of metal casting has been used in India for over 4,000 years and is still used.

There are two main processes of lost wax casting: solid casting & hollow casting. The product of artisans who are mainly from Central and Eastern India are in great demand in domestic and foreign markets because of primitive simplicity, enchanting folk motifs and forceful form.

PM's 3rd meet was with PM of Iceland. This year India-Iceland are celebrating 50th year of our bilateral relations. Discussions between them focussed on cooperation in field of geothermal energy & its various aspects inclusive research, training, skill development & innovation in this space, Iceland Foreign Secretary Vinay Kwatra said.

"The two leaders are also speaking about cooperation in Blue Economy as also the previous two leaders, including in the field of fisheries & food processing," Foreign Secretary Vinay Kwatra added.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi and other Heads of Government participate in India-Nordic Summit at Christiansborg Palace in Copenhagen, Denmark.

India & Iceland have many opportunities on issues of climate cooperation & geothermal energy along with deepening cooperation in carbon binding &fisheries sector.We talked about culture & gender equality, said Iceland PM Katrín Jakobsdóttir on meeting with PM Modi.

"India and Iceland are different countries. India is a continent in itself. Our country has unspoiled nature which's unique...We talked about Yoga as well, it's quite popular in Iceland. A lot of people practice it regularly," she added.

Prime Ministers Narendra Modi & PM of Finland Sanna Marin met in Copenhagen. The developmental partnership between India & Finland is rapidly growing. Both leaders discussed ways to further cement this partnership in trade, investment, technology and other such sectors, PMO said.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi met his Swedish counterpart Magdalena Andersson on Wednesday and the two leaders discussed ways to deepen bilateral ties and the progress in the Joint Action Plan.

"Cementing ties with Sweden. PM @narendramodi and @SwedishPM Magdalena Andersson held extensive talks on further diversifying the India-Sweden friendship," the Prime Minister's Office tweeted.

Modi, who arrived here on Tuesday from Berlin on the second leg of his visit to three European nations, met Andersson on the sidelines of the second India-Nordic Summit in the Danish capital.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi held a bilateral meeting with the PM of Sweden Magdalena Andersson earlier today in Copenhagen, Denmark, ahead of the Nordic summit.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi holds a bilateral meeting with the PM of Iceland Katrín Jakobsdóttir in Copenhagen, Denmark.

PM Modi meets Norway PM Jonas Gahr Støre in Copenhagen, Denmark to take stock of the full range of bilateral ties between the two nations and ways to deepen developmental cooperation.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday met his Norwegian counterpart Jonas Gahr Store here and the two leaders took stock of the full range of bilateral relations and discussed ways to deepen developmental cooperation. Modi met Store on the sidelines of the second India-Nordic Summit in the Danish capital.