New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi will embark on a historic diplomatic visit to Greece on August 25, the first by an Indian Prime Minister to the country in 40 years. Significantly, Prime Minister Narendra Modi will become the first Indian PM to visit Greece since Indira Gandhi in 1983. PM Narendra Modi’s visit highlights New Delhi’s deepening engagement with the Mediterranean nation.
The diplomatic relations between India and Greece goes beyond military cooperation. Both nations are aligned on their stance when it comes to core global issues like Kashmir and Cyprus. Greece is also backing India’s bid for permanent seat at the United Nation Security Council.
In a conversation with ETV Bharat, India’s former ambassador Jitendra Tripathi said, “Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to Greece will send a message to Turkey, a country that has been India's rival and against us on all counts. Turkey has always been relentless in its backing of Pakistan on the issue of Jammu and Kashmir. India was the first to reach out to Turkey when it was devastated by earthquake but that did not deter them (Turkey) from changing their stance on Pakistan."
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"Therefore, India needs to develop strategic relations with Greece to step up pressure on Turkey”. He noted that agreements on consular service and technical and digital cooperation are likely to be signed between the two nations.
On his way back from South Africa, where he will participate in the BRICS summit, Prime Minister Narendra Modi will visit Athens where he will meet Greece Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis. Both leaders are scheduled to sign several agreements and will focus on range of issues including trade and investment, shipping, migration, culture and defence cooperation. Prime Minister Narendra Modi is also slated to address the Indian community later.
Furthermore, Prof Harsh Pant, Vice President for studies at Observer Research Foundation, New Delhi said that India’s ties with Greece have seen recent momentum after years of neglect.
“Visit by Prime Minister Narendra Modi after 40 years to Greece is indicative of the trend that after ignoring the Mediterranean for very long time, India is now willing to expand its footprint in the part of the world that is geopolitically important and also very significant geo-economically as India seeks new ways to connect with Eurasia," Prof Pant told ETV Bharat.
"PM Modi’s visit will witness a signing of strategic partnership agreement between India and Greece, thereby, elevating the ties significantly and ensuring that there is a long-term trajectory to this engagement. In some ways culturally, civilisationally, historically, there is a unique bond between the two ancient civilizations that needs to be resurrected and PM Modi will certainly underscore the commitment during his visit”, added Prof Pant.
“Both India and Greece have had similar views on a range of global issues. Greece’s consistent support on India's domestic issues especially on Kashmir and India’s support on Cyprus issues to Greece is indicative of the fact that both sides want to build on that convergence. Therefore, PM Modi’s visit will be an important one. It will ignite greater convergence between the two nations”, he stressed.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit will pave the path for Greece to emerge as the gateway of India to Europe. Union External Affairs Minister Dr S Jaishankar visited Greece in 2021 when both sides expressed commitment to the idea of strategic partnership between the two countries. Greece is looking to attract more investment and talent from India and both the countries last year signed a declaration of intent on migration and mobility.
PM Modi’s visit to Greece will see a wide range of discussions on regional and global issues including Ukraine, Afghanistan and Greece’s dispute with Turkey. Despite its strong ties with China, Greece also shares India’s vision of a free, inclusive and open Indo-Pacific that is focused on connectivity and growth for all.
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