Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday met German Chancellor Angela Merkel, his Spanish counterpart Pedro Sanchez and Indonesian President Joko Widodo on the sidelines of the G20 Summit in Rome.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday met German Chancellor Angela Merkel, his Spanish counterpart Pedro Sanchez and Indonesian President Joko Widodo on the sidelines of the G20 Summit in Rome.
Here are the key highlights of the PM's interactions with the leaders:
Indonesian President Joko Widodo
Prime Minister Modi exchanged views with Indonesian President Widodo on the bilateral comprehensive strategic partnership, trade, economy and people-to-people ties.
Modi also congratulated Indonesia for its G20 Presidency next year and assured India's support as part of Troika (preceding, current, and incoming G20 Presidencies), the Ministry of External Affairs said in a tweet.
"Strong relations with Indonesia is a key part of India’s ‘Act East' policy and ‘SAGAR’ vision. Ways to improve economic linkages and cultural cooperation figured prominently during the talks," the PMO India said in a tweet.
SAGAR is an acronym for "Security and Growth for all in the Region" in 2015. This vision focuses on cooperative measures for sustainable use of the oceans and provides a framework for a safe, secure, and stable maritime domain in the region.
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German Chancellor Angela Merkel
Modi and Merkel held wide-ranging and fruitful talks on the strong bilateral relations and reaffirmed their commitment to maintaining the close strategic partnership.
Modi, who is here at the invitation of his Italian counterpart Mario Draghi to attend the G20 summit, was accompanied by External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar, Foreign Secretary Harsh Vardhan Shringla, and other officials during his meeting with Merkel.
Merkel, 67, who is stepping down after 16 years at the helm of the largest economy in Europe, has led the country safely through the global financial crisis and the coronavirus pandemic. Under her watch, bilateral ties with India have made significant strides.
Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez
Prime Minister Modi invited more investments from Spain in India's infrastructure projects as he met his Spanish counterpart Pedro Sanchez and exchanged views on the robust bilateral ties, regional and global issues of mutual interest, including the situation in Afghanistan and the Indo-Pacific. Modi, who is here at the invitation of his Italian counterpart Mario Draghi to attend the G20 summit, was accompanied by National Security Advisor Ajit Doval and External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar during his meeting with Sanchez.
The two leaders welcomed the growing bilateral trade and investment linkages including the recent signing of the contract to procure 56 C295 aircraft from Airbus Spain, 40 of which will be ‘Made in India’ in collaboration with Tata Advanced Systems, the Ministry of External Affairs said in a press release.
The two leaders agreed to further expand bilateral cooperation in new areas like e-mobility, cleantech, advanced materials, and deep-sea exploration.
Prime Minister Modi invited Spain to invest in various sectors including Green Hydrogen, infrastructure, and defense manufacturing, and further take advantage of India’s National Infrastructure Pipeline, Asset Monetisation Plan, and the Gati Shakti Plan, the release said.
The two leaders discussed India-European Union relations as well as cooperation on climate action and priorities at the upcoming COP26 summit in Glasgow. They also exchanged views on regional and global issues of mutual interest including Afghanistan and the Indo-Pacific, it said.
India has voiced concern over the situation in Afghanistan after the Taliban seized power in Kabul in August. India has underlined the need for Afghanistan's territory not to be used to threaten or attack any country or to shelter or train terrorists, or to plan or to finance terrorist attacks.
India, the US, and several other world powers have been talking about the need to ensure a free, open, and thriving Indo-Pacific in the backdrop of China's rising military maneuvering in the resource-rich region. Modi also said he looks forward to welcoming Prime Minister Sanchez in India next year.
Earlier, the Prime Minister's Office tweeted that both leaders had fruitful talks on ways to deepen ties between India and Spain. "The two nations are cooperating extensively in areas such as trade, energy, innovation, and more,” it said.
(with PTI inputs)
