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Modi starts Mission Europe
Prime Minister Narendra Modi kicked off a four-nation tour on Monday, aimed at boosting bilateral and economic ties with Germany, Spain, Russia and France. In the first leg of his trip, Modi is expected to hold talks with German Chancellor Angela Merkel and will call on German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier.
New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi kicked off a four-nation tour on Monday, aimed at boosting bilateral and economic ties with Germany, Spain, Russia and France. In the first leg of his trip, Modi is expected to hold talks with German Chancellor Angela Merkel and will call on German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier.
Modi is meeting Merkel at a time when the German Chancellor is not happy with US President Donald Trump who refused to re-commit to the 2015 Paris climate deal at the G7 summit. Merkel, who will be fighting elections in September, has shown more inclination towards French President Emmanuel Macron, whom Prime Minister Modi will also be meeting on June 3 on his last leg of the tour.
Merkel is likely to apprise Modi of the outcome of the G7 Summit wherein leaders from the UK, Canada, France, Germany, Italy and Japan had re-affirmed their support for the Paris accord - but Trump said he would make a decision in the coming week. Both the leaders are expected to hold wide range of discussions on global, regional and bilateral issues.
In the aftermath of Manchester terror attacks, both the leaders are also expected to discuss the terror that continues to threaten both the countries and the world. Modi’s second stop in Europe will be Spain where he will arrive on Tuesday in the evening. This is will be the first standalone visit to Spain by an Indian Prime Minister since then prime minister Rajiv Gandhi visited in 1988.
“We will discuss ways to enhance bilateral engagement, especially in the economic sphere, and cooperation on international issues of common concern, particularly in combating terrorism,” Modi said in his departure statement on Facebook.
Modi will meet President of Spain Mariano Rajoy and discuss bilateral and other issues of mutual interest. As part of the programme, the Prime Minister will be calling on King Felipe VI of Spain. He will also have a roundtable interaction with leading Spanish business leaders keen to invest in India.
Modi will arrive in Russia on June 1. He will then head into the 18th India-Russia Annual Summit in St Petersburg with Russian President Vladimir Putin. It is the first time the annual summit will be held outside Moscow. Russia was the first country with which India instituted annual summits in the year 2000.
During the visit, there is an expectation that India and Russia will sign a framework agreement for Kudankulam atomic power plants 5 and 6. Defence cooperation, counter-terrorism, situation in Afghanistan, energy cooperation will be the main areas of discussions.
The fourth and last stop of Modi’s during the four nation tour will be France. Modi will arrive on June 2 and will hold talks with newly elected President Emmanuel Macron on June 3. Discussions are expected to revolve around ways to further strengthen India-France strategic ties. Modi is among the first foreign guests for the Macron government which took office on May 14.
