G20 Summit: Ahead of the G20 Summit, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday held talks with his Bangladeshi counterpart Sheikh Hasina at his residence. The two global leaders vowed to ‘deepen and diversify’ bilateral cooperation and discussed issues such as connectivity and commercial linkages. He also met Pravind Kumar Jugnauth, Prime Minister of Mauritius. Jugnauth thanked PM Modi for the special invitation extended to Mauritius to participate in the G20 format as a ‘Guest Country’. According to MEA, Prime Minister appreciated the active participation of Mauritius in various Working Groups and Ministerial Meetings of the G20 under the Indian Presidency.
PM Modi met Sheikh Hasina and Pravind Kumar Jugnauth
Taking to X, Prime Minister Narendra Modi termed the meeting with Jugnauth “very good” and said “This is a special year for India-Mauritius relations as we mark 75 years of diplomatic ties between our nations.”
“PM @KumarJugnauth and I had a very good meeting. This is a special year for India-Mauritius relations as we mark 75 years of diplomatic ties between our nations. We discussed cooperation in sectors like infrastructure, FinTech, culture and more. Also reiterated India’s commitment to furthering the voice of the Global South,” PM Modi said in a post on his X handle.
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In a post on his second bilateral of the day after holding talks with Mauritian Prime Minister Pravind Jugnauth, Modi said he had “productive deliberations” with PM Sheikh Hasina. “The progress in India-Bangladesh relations in the last 9 years has been very gladdening. Our talks covered areas like connectivity, commercial linkage and more,” Modi said.
In a post on X, the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) said, “PM @narendramodi had productive talks with PM Sheikh Hasina on diversifying the India-Bangladesh bilateral cooperation. They agreed to strengthen ties in a host of sectors including connectivity, culture as well as people-to-people ties.”
India-Mauritius bilateral relationship
Prime Minister’s office on Friday taking to X said that “PM Modi met Mauritius PM Pravind Kumar Jugnauth, a key partner integral to India’s vision SAGAR. Both leaders enthusiastically acknowledged the significant enhancement of the India-Mauritius bilateral relationship, commemorating its remarkable 75th anniversary this year.”
On Mauritius-India trade relations, PM Jugnauth said, “India has signed first agreement with the first country in Africa with Mauritius. The Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) is another testimony of the consideration that India has for Mauritius. This has now opened up new avenues for trade between the two countries…It is beneficial to both countries…”
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Meanwhile, in 2023, India, and Mauritius celebrated 75 years of diplomatic relations. “I think in itself, it is a milestone that needs to be celebrated and also a testimony of how this relationship has been strengthening throughout the years so that we have reached a situation today where I can say that never before has this relationship reached such heights,” Jugnauth said.
Bilateral talks with Bangladeshi counterpart
Following the PM Modi and Shiekh Hasina meeting, the Ministry of External Affairs said, “PM Narendra Modi had a bilateral meeting with Bangladesh PM Sheikh Hasina. The leaders welcomed the operationalization of the Agreement on the use of the Chattogram and Mongla Ports and the commissioning of the India-Bangladesh Friendship Pipeline. They also expressed appreciation for the operationalisation of the settlement of bilateral trade in INR and encouraged the business community on both sides to utilize the mechanism. They looked forward to beginning negotiations on the Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA), covering trade in goods, services, and protecting and promoting investment.”
They welcomed the exchange of following MoUs for strengthening bilateral cooperation:
- Memorandum of Understanding on Cooperation in Digital Payment mechanisms between National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) and Bangladesh Bank.
- Memorandum of Understanding on renewal of the Cultural Exchange Program (CEP) between India and Bangladesh for 2023-2025.
- Memorandum of Understanding between Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) and Bangladesh Agriculture Research Council (BARC).
With regard to the regional situation, Prime Minister Modi expressed appreciation of the burden shouldered by Bangladesh in hosting over a million persons displaced from Rakhine State in Myanmar, and conveyed India’s constructive and positive approach to support solutions towards safe and sustainable repatriation of the refugees: MEA
(with inputs from agencies)
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