Prime Minister Narendra Modi welcomed Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni who began a two-day visit to India to raise bilateral relations as part of the G20 Foreign Minister’s meeting in New Delhi on March 2, 2023.
Welcoming Italy’s participation in the Indo-Pacific, Mr. Modi said, “It is a matter of great pleasure that Italy has decided to join the Indo-Pacific Ocean Initiative. This will enable us to identify concrete themes for enhancing our cooperation in the Indo-Pacific. We have a people-to-people connect (sic) between India and Italy. We look forward to deepening and strengthening it more. We are in the talks for Mobility and Migration between the two nations. Once the mutual settlements come into being, it will usher in the new era of mutual cooperation in many fields, especially education”.
Speaking during a press conference with Mr. Modi, Italian PM Giorgia Meloni, the first Italian Prime Minister to visit India in almost five years., mentioned digital transition, emerging technologies, space, and cybersecurity among the strategic areas “on which we want to collaborate and on which we really believe we can do much more.”
“PM Modi knows that he can rely on us, on our cooperation and full round support for the upcoming G20 summit, and to further enhance our relationship. I firmly believe that there is a lot we can do together”, added Ms. Meloni.
‘Fully prepared to contribute to any peace process’
As Ms. Meloni and Mr. Modi met, G20 Foreign Ministers were holding talks in New Delhi that looked set to be dominated by Russia’s year-long war in Ukraine.
Ms. Meloni said she hoped that India, as G20 president, may facilitate a path towards “just peace” in Ukraine.
“We both share the hope that India as G20 president can play a central role in facilitating negotiations towards a ceasefire and a just peace”, Ms. Meloni said, stressing that Italy “fully supports” Kyiv’s territorial integrity.
“From the beginning of the Ukraine conflict, India has made it clear that this dispute can only be resolved through dialogue and diplomacy. India is fully prepared to contribute to any peace process”, said Prime Minister Narendra Modi
“With its G20 Presidency, India can very much represent the interests of the global south. We hope that India having a G20 presidency can play a central role in facilitating a negotiating process for the cessation of hostilities for a just peace (in Ukraine). Keeping the multilateral community united is important and we hope the Indian presidency can do even more”, said Ms. Meloni.
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The Foreign Ministers’ meeting comes days after a meeting of the G20 finance chiefs that was also dominated by the war. That meeting ended with India issuing a “chair’s summary and outcome document” instead of a joint communique due to a lack of consensus among the group on condemning Russia.
Ms. Meloni landed in Delhi on Thursday for a visit until Friday.
(With input from Reuters)
