New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday morning left for a five-nation tour that will take him to Afghanistan, Qatar, Switzerland, the US and Mexico.
"PM Narendra Modi leaving for Herat, Afghanistan, marking the start of his five-nation visit," the Prime Minister's Office tweeted.
On the first leg of his visit, the Prime Minister will reach Herat in western part of Afghanistan in afternoon. There, he will inaugurate India-Afghan Friendship Dam earlier known as Salma Dam.
Before leaving for his five nation visit, PM Modi said that Afghanistan-India Friendship Dam in Herat is a symbol of the friendship and would usher in hope, light up homes, nourish the fertile fields of Herat and bring prosperity to the people of the region.
Modi, in a Facebook message said, he is looking forward to meet President Ashraf Ghani and exchange notes on regional situation and setting agenda for bilateral cooperation in the coming period.
Tomorrow evening, the Prime Minister will arrive in Doha, the capital of Qatar, where he will hold meeting with the Emir of Qatar to further strengthen bilateral relations. Apart from this, Modi will visit workers' camp and also hold meeting with business leaders.
Talking about his Qatar tour, the Prime Minster wrote that the visit is aimed at strengthening economic and people-to-people ties between the two countries.
"This visit will nourish the historical bonds of friendship deeply rooted in people to people contacts, energy, trade and investment partnership," he said.
According to Foreign Secretary S Jaishankar, in Switzerland, the third stop of PM Modi’s tour, the Prime Minister and the President of the Swiss Confederation Johann Schneider-Ammann will hold discussions on bilateral, regional and multilateral issues of mutual interest.
During his talks with the Swiss President, the Prime Minister is also likely to raise the issue of black money stashed by Indians in Swiss banks. Modi will also seek support of Switzerland for India's membership of the 48-member Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG) as it is a key member of the elite grouping.
"I will hold talks with President Schneider-Ammann to deepen our bilateral and multilateral cooperation. In Geneva, I will meet prominent businesspersons. Our agenda will be to expand economic and investment ties. I will meet Indian scientists working at CERN. India takes pride in their contribution to exploring new frontiers of science in the service of humanity," the Prime Minister said ahead of his visit.
On June 7, the Prime Minister will arrive in Washington. He will meet US President Barack Obama and the issue of NSG membership is likely to figure during the talks. India had on May 12 formally applied for membership of the NSG.
During his stay in the United States, Modi will also address a Joint Meeting of the US Congress. Besides, he will hold meeting with US India Business Council with interact with Indian community.
Taking about his address at the Joint Meeting of the US Congress on May 8, Modi said, "I thank Speaker Paul Ryan for inviting me to speak to Congressmen and Senators. I will also interact with members of the House of Representatives and the Senate, many of whom have been valued friends of India and strong votaries of deepening India-USA ties."
"India and USA are natural partners, two vibrant democracies that celebrate their diversity and pluralism. Strong India-USA ties benefit not only our two nations but also the entire world," he added.
Foreign Secretary Jaishankar said that the main objective of the forthcoming visit of Prime Minister would be to consolidate the progress made in diverse areas such as economy, energy, environment, defence and security, and to intensify cooperation for the future.
The Prime Minister will wind up his tour by visiting Mexico on Jun 8. The focus of the visit will be on expanding economic cooperation and seeking its support for India’s NSG membership. This will be the first bilateral visit by an Indian Prime Minister after 1986 when then PM Rajiv Gandhi had visited that country. Then Prime Minister Manmohan Singh had visited Mexico in 2012 to attend G 20 summit.
