India’s External Affairs Minister (EAM), Dr. S. Jaishankar, held direct talks with top leaders of Portugal and Italy in the past few days. The meeting is a part of the Minister’s four-day visit to Portugal and Italy to bolster the bilateral talks and cooperation between the influential nations.
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EAM with “productive talks” in Portugal
Mr. Jaishankar arrived in Lisbon on Tuesday and met with Portuguese Prime Minister Antonio Costa and Minister of Foreign Affairs Joao Cravinho. The discussion entailed ways to bolster bilateral cooperation between the two nations. Addressing issues on defense, trade, investment, tourism, and direct airplanes connecting the two nations. Mr. Jaishankar conveyed greetings from Prime Minister Narendra Modi to Portuguese Prime Minister Antonio Costa as he showed his strong support for deepening diplomatic relations between India, Portugal, and the EU.
The discussions with the Foreign Affairs Minister of Portugal, Joao Cravinho, led to both sides agreeing to a project. Implementation of Standard Operating Procedure, a pilot project to detect the full benefits of an agreement on the Recruitment of Indian Citizens to work in the Portuguese Republic. They exchanged views on significant regional and international developments, including India-EU relations, connectivity focusing on India Middle East Europe Economic Corridor (IMEEC), conflict in Ukraine, the status quo in West Asia, and the Indo-Pacific.
As part of a joint press conference between the two Foreign ministers, S Jaishankar said that a lot of new energy and activities across several sectors. He added that a few Indian IT companies have made their mark in Portugal.
On social media, Mr. Jaishankar posted about positive talks with his Portuguese counterpart. Progress in bilateral economic progress and appreciated the sustained political exchanges and the support for India-EU ties. The meeting has further developed the relations between the two nations as they decided to celebrate the 50th anniversary of their diplomatic alliance in 2025.
EAM meets top Italian administrators
On the second part of the four-day visits to Portugal and Italy, Mr. Jaishankar met with apex Italian officials. The visit lasted for two days, from November 2nd to 3rd, at the invitation of the Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister of Italy. EAM met with the President of the Italian Republic, H.E. Sergio Mattarella, and held talks with his Italian counterpart, Mr. Antonio Tajani. Mr. Jaishankar also met with the Italian Defence Minister Guido Crosetto and discussed ways to strengthen the India-Italy defense partnership.
According to the press release from The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA), the Foreign Ministers of the respective nations reviewed the entire spectrum of India-Italy Strategic Partnership. They expressed their happiness at the substantial growth in diverse areas of India-Italy bilateral cooperations, including regular and effective exchanges and interactions, economic collaboration, defense and security, culture, and people-to-people interaction. There is a concord between the two sides that there is a huge potential for further expansion of collaboration in the domains of, Renewable Energy, IT and Startups, digital infrastructure, innovation, Artificial Intelligence, cyber, and space.
The economic partnership between the two countries is among the top 10 economies and is crucial for the diversification of the global supply chain, considering the strengths of the respective nations. As per the statements released by MEA, the Ministers deliberated upon the significance of regional and international developments. Mr. Jaishankar expressed his appreciation to Italy for joining the key India-led global initiatives such as ISA, CDRI, IPOI, Global Bio-Fuels Alliance, and India Middle East Europe Economic Corridor (IMEEC). Foreign Minister Tajani congratulated India for the successful lunar landing of “Chandrayaan – 3” and indicated interest in deeper cooperation between ISRO and the Italian space agency, ASI.
EAM attends Joint Session of the Senate in Rome
Mr. Jaishankar, on 3rd November, attended the Joint Session of the Senate’s External Affairs and Defence Commission in Rome. Mr. Jaishankar, while addressing the session, said that Italy is the oldest link of India with Europe. He said that in recent years, Italy has made some major contributions to strengthening cooperation with the European Union as a whole. He said the Free Trade Agreement with the European Union is among the most significant set of agreements ratified due to its complexity and difficulty in negotiation.
Dr. Jaishankar said that among India’s key partners, the European Union and especially Italy rank very high in terms of political and technological cooperation. He said that around 750 Italian companies have invested more than 6.3 billion dollars in foreign investment in India. Dr. Jaishankar welcomed Italy and the European Union’s greater interest in the Indo-Pacific. He further added Italy and India should work in close proximity to ensure re-globalization. He thanked Italy for the immense support they showered on India during the G20 presidency and reiterated India’s openness to work with Italy to create a better world.
New pacts for a better future
India and Italy further strengthened their diplomatic relations by signing the Mobility and Migration Partnership Agreement. This agreement enables a seamless movement of workers, students, and professionals. This concord came after a comprehensive and productive meeting with Mr. Jaishankar and his counterpart Antonio Tajani. They also conversed about the challenges of illegal migration.
