Trust Modi to make the most of what he can. In his three-nation visit to Brussels, US, and Saudi Arabia, Prime Minister Narendra Modi stopped over at Riyadh, for his first Saudi visit, where he managed to keep himself busy with a series of meetings and engagements.
Modi and Saudi King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud on Sunday committed to fight terrorism and ramp up security and intelligence cooperation. In addition, Modi invited Saudi business to invest in India, and opened the door for more Indian companies to operate in the desert kingdom.
Appreciating the work of Saudi Arabia against terror, Modi said governments across the world should enhance cooperation in intelligence sharing, law enforcement, developing best practices and technologies as well as in extradition arrangements and capacity-building.
Modi gifted Saudi King a gold-plated replica of the Cheraman Juma Masjid in Kerala. Both the sides signed five MoUs including Labour Co-operation, Investment Promotion Cooperation, Cooperation in Field of Handicrafts, Intelligence related to Money Laundering, terror financing and related crimes. He also held talks with top Saudi officials. High on India's agenda was energy and healthcare. Modi attended a round table with Saudi Commerce Minister, 30 Saudi CEOs & Indian business leaders present. He also addressed business leaders at Saudi Chambers of Commerce.
One of the highlights of his maiden visit was his engagement at the TCS all women IT & ITES Centre in Riyadh, where he was given an overview of the operations, and interacted with the all-women workforce. NaMO emphasized the role of technology in governance, and said e-governance, for him, means easy governance, effective governance, and economic governance. He invited the women IT professionals to visit India, and said their visit will make a huge impact even in India.
Attending the 13th India-EU Summit in capital Belgium, Modi addressed the dominant issue at hand - Terrorism. Modi started off with a meeting with Belgian Prime Minister Charles Michel. Both the premiers talked to expand trade, investment and high technology partnership.
“India is one of the brightest economic opportunities in the world today. Our macroeconomic fundamentals are robust, and at 7 per cent plus, we are one of the fastest growing economies of the world. I invite the Belgian government and companies to proactively associate with India’s ambitious development projects. including Digital India, Start-Up India and Skill India. Belgian businesses can make their global supply chains more cost effective by manufacturing in India,” Modi said. PM Modi met with Donald Tusk, President of European Council and European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker at the India-EU summit. He also paid tribute to the victims of the Brussels airport and metro attack.
Modi and Michel remotely activated India’s largest telescope located at Devasthal, Uttarakhand, from Brussels. The 3.6-metre optical telescope which is the largest in India will be used by scientists to study areas such as magnetic field structures of stars, chemical evolution of the Milky Way and the search for extra solar planets.
He reached Washington early on March 31, to attend the Nuclear Security Summit from March 31 to April 1. At the gathering of world leaders at a dinner hosted by US President Barack Obama at the White House, Modi shared India's assessment on terrorism and gave a passionate and precise speech on the impending threats of terrorism saying that while terrorists are now using modern technology and devices, with the evolution of global terrorism, national and international efforts to counter them have become outdated.
The fourth and final Nuclear Security Summit saw leaders from more than 50 countries and four international organisations in attendance. “Terror has evolved. Terrorists are using 21st century technology. But our responses are rooted in the past,” said Modi. Referring to the recent terror strikes in Brussels, Modi said it showed the world how real and immediate the threat to nuclear security from terrorism was. Elaborating on the topic Modi identified “contemporary features of terrorism. First, today's terrorism uses extreme violence as theatre. Second, we are no longer looking for a man in a cave, but we are hunting for a terrorist in a city with a computer or a smart phone. Third, State actors working with nuclear traffickers and terrorists present the greatest risk.”
“The reach and supply chains of terrorism are global; but genuine cooperation between nation states is not.” It was, however, Modi's “Drop the notion that terrorism is someone else's problem and that 'his' terrorist is not 'my' terrorist” statement that hit bullseye. Modi told world leaders that nuclear security must remain the abiding national priority for all countries and all States “must completely abide by their international obligations.” The Summit is divided in three plenary sessions; with the first focusing on national actions to enhance nuclear security, the second international institutional actions to strengthen nuclear security, and the third, a policy discussion on nuclear terrorism based on a hypothetical scenario.
The summit comes at a time of heightened concern over the possibility of the Islamic State setting off radioactive bombs, and North Korea's nuclear weapons development. Narendra Modi had a lot more than just the summit on his mind in his third visit to the US. NaMo held a bilateral meeting with New Zealand counterpart John Key, and is scheduled to hold many such bilateral meetings, especially one with British Prime Minister David Cameron.
One of the highlights of the summit was the absence of Russia, as relations between US and the former-Soviet country remains strained. Both the countries have the largest nuclear stockpiles and are experienced at dealing with them. Their disagreements could limit the prospects of international cooperation.
Saudi Arabia honours Modi
Saudi Arabia conferred 'King Abdulaziz Sash', the highest civilian honour, on Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday. This honour is named after the founder of the modern Saudi state Abdulaziz Al Saud. Among other notable recipients of this honour are US President Barack Obama, British Prime Minister David Cameron, Russian President Vladimir Putin, Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and Indonesian President Joko Widodo.
