According to Hindustan Times, on August 25, Indian Prime Minister Modi arrived in Athens, Greece, after attending the 15th BRICS Summit in Johannesburg, South Africa. Mr. Modi's visit to Greece marks an important milestone in bilateral relations as this is the first visit by an Indian Prime Minister to this European country in four decades.

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi (left) and his Greek counterpart Kyriakos Mitsotakis at a meeting in Athens, Greece. Photo: Reuters

During the visit, Indian Prime Minister Modi held talks with his Greek counterpart Mitsotakis to exchange views on bilateral, regional and international issues of mutual interest. A joint statement issued after the talks stated: “Based on the long-standing, warm and close relations between the two countries and their peoples, the two leaders decided to upgrade the Greece-India bilateral relationship to a strategic partnership and agreed to work towards expanding bilateral cooperation in the political , security and economic fields.” The two prime ministers also decided to take measures to further strengthen people-to-people exchanges between the two countries.

Appreciating the results of bilateral economic and trade cooperation in recent years, the two leaders of India and Greece also emphasized that both sides need to double bilateral trade turnover by 2030. Data from the Indian Government shows that bilateral trade turnover in goods reached about 2 billion USD in the period 2022-2023. According to the Joint Statement, both sides agreed to soon complete the agreement on cooperation in movement and migration to facilitate the workforce of the two countries.

At a joint press conference with his Greek counterpart Mitsotakis after the talks, Modi said the two countries would expand cooperation in defense, security, infrastructure, agriculture, education and emerging technologies. According to the Indian leader, New Delhi and Athens will have an institutional platform for dialogue between their national security advisers. “This is the first visit by an Indian Prime Minister to Greece in 40 years. However, the depth of our ties has not diminished nor has there been any deterioration in the warmth of our relations,” Modi said.

For his part, Greek Prime Minister Mitsotakis described his meeting with Modi as a “new starting point” in bilateral relations. Mitsotakis said both countries are ready to stand together in overcoming the current challenges. India and Greece both support diplomacy and dialogue to resolve the Ukraine crisis. They also have “excellent coordination” on geopolitical, global and regional issues, including the Indo-Pacific. India and Greece are united in maintaining maritime security and the need to adhere to the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), which is of utmost importance given the concerns over the situation in the Eastern Mediterranean and the Indo-Pacific.

According to The New Indian Express, during the visit, Greek President Katerina Sakellaropoulou conferred the Medal of Honor on Indian Prime Minister Modi for his contribution in promoting Greece’s position. Greek leaders also congratulated Modi on the successful landing of the Chandrayaan-3 spacecraft on the Moon’s surface.

In the context of the European Union (EU) increasingly wanting to get closer to New Delhi, Greece has recently made efforts to promote bilateral relations with India. The agreement of both sides to upgrade the relationship to a strategic partnership is considered a major step forward in Greece-India relations. This will bring many benefits to Greece in particular and the EU in general as the position and role of the South Asian country is increasing in the international arena.

LAM ANH

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