New Delhi, May 13 Prime Minister Narendra Modi will depart on May 15 for a five-day foreign trip. The Ministry of External Affairs said on Wednesday that the tour will begin in the UAE and conclude in Italy.
Regarding the Prime Minister’s visit, Foreign Ministry Secretary (West) Sibi George said, “Prime Minister Narendra Modi will visit five countries from May 15 to 20, including the UAE and four European countries—the Netherlands, Sweden, Norway, and Italy. On May 15, he will meet President Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan in the UAE. Bilateral relations, energy cooperation, and regional issues will be discussed. India and the UAE have a comprehensive strategic partnership, and more than 4.5 million Indians live there.”
The Prime Minister will then be in the Netherlands from May 15 to 17. This is his second visit since 2017 and comes at a crucial juncture in bilateral relations. This includes the third India-Nordic Summit, which will focus on trade, investment, green technology, and innovation. The visit to these four European countries comes at a time when we finalized the India-EU FTA earlier this year.”
George further said, “During this visit, the Prime Minister will hold bilateral talks with the Prime Minister of the Netherlands. He will also meet King Willem-Alexander and Queen Maxima. The Prime Minister is also expected to address the Indian community and meet top business leaders from the Netherlands.
After the Netherlands, the Prime Minister will travel to Sweden. On May 17th, the Prime Minister will make an official visit to Gothenburg, Sweden. This will be Prime Minister Modi’s second visit to Sweden. Previously, in 2018, he visited Sweden for the first India-Nordic Summit.
This upcoming visit reflects the growing depth of India-Sweden relations. The India-Sweden Innovation Partnership, announced in 2018, has steadily strengthened ties between the two countries. During the visit, the Prime Minister will discuss a wide range of bilateral issues with his Swedish counterpart, including trade and investment, green transition, AI, emerging technologies, robust supply chains, defense cooperation, space cooperation, climate action, and people-to-people contacts.
The Prime Minister will also attend the European Roundtable for Industry as the Chief Guest, a high-level forum of leading industrialists and business leaders from Europe and the UK. Ursula Vaughan will also address the meeting.
According to George, economic and business ties between India and Sweden continue to grow. are strengthening. Bilateral trade is projected to reach approximately US$7.75 billion in 2025. More than 280 Swedish companies are operating in India and more than 75 Indian companies are operating in Sweden.
The two Prime Ministers also took this initiative forward during COP28 in Dubai in 2023.
During the AI Action Summit held in February this year, India and Sweden signed a joint statement to establish a “Sweden-India Technology and AI Corridor,” aimed at strengthening cooperation in AI, emerging technologies, and the innovation ecosystem.
Defense cooperation has also emerged as an important pillar of bilateral relations. The Swedish company has established its UAV (unmanned aerial vehicle) manufacturing plant in India. This is Saab’s first such manufacturing unit outside Sweden and the first facility established under 100 percent foreign direct investment (FDI) in India’s defense sector.
On May 18, PM Modi held bilateral talks at the invitation of Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre, and the third meeting will be held on May 19. He will undertake an official visit to Norway to attend the India-Nordic Summit.
This will be Prime Minister Modi’s first bilateral visit to Norway and the first visit by an Indian Prime Minister to Norway in 43 years. The Prime Minister will also meet with King Harald V and Queen Sonja of Norway.
Prime Minister Modi and PM Støre will jointly address the India-Norway Business and Research Summit, which will focus on promoting trade, technology, and investment and advancing the implementation of the India-EFTA Trade and Economic Partnership Agreement (TEPA).
The third India-Nordic Summit will be held in Oslo on May 19th. Prime Minister Modi will be joined by the Prime Ministers of Norway, Denmark, Finland, Iceland, and Sweden.
The Nordic countries are important partners for India in the areas of technology, innovation, sustainable development, renewable energy, and digitalization.
Bilateral trade in goods and services between India and the Nordic countries has reached approximately US$90 billion. Of this, India’s exports represent approximately US$9.5 billion and imports approximately US$10 billion. is around $9.5 billion.
More than 700 Nordic companies operate in India, while approximately 150 Indian companies have a presence in the Nordic region. Prime Minister Modi will also hold bilateral meetings with the Prime Ministers of Denmark, Iceland, and Finland during the third India-Nordic Summit.
The PM will then travel to Italy. George said, “As you know, the Italian Defense Minister made a successful visit to India last month. Both sides are also exploring the possibilities of defense industrial cooperation, co-development, and co-production of defense equipment.”
