Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday held bilateral discussions with South African President Cyril Ramaphosa, Philippines President Ferdinand Marcos Jr, and Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi on the sidelines of the BRICS summit, with a focus on boosting trade and investment ties.
“We talked about various issues, notably regional issues and the India-Egypt friendship that is significantly growing in recent times.
The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said the two leaders exchanged views on a range of global issues of mutual interest and agreed to maintain close coordination in multilateral fora. “In the context of the successful translocation of cheetahs from South Africa to India, the prime minister invited South Africa to consider joining the International Big Cat Alliance,” it said. The prime minister said he and Marcos Jr reviewed the growing momentum in the India-Philippines strategic partnership with a key focus on economic linkages, cooperation in technology, trade, space and innovation. The MEA said the two leaders expressed satisfaction at the progress made in bilateral cooperation across all areas and agreed to further deepen and expand collaboration in the fields of defence and security, trade and investment, space, railway infrastructure, fintech, education, tourism, science and technology, and innovation. PM Modi said on social media that he had a “wonderful interaction” with President El-Sisi. On his meeting with Tokayev, Modi said he had “productive discussions” with the Kazakh President on giving “fresh momentum” to the India-Kazakhstan strategic partnership. PM Modi said he congratulated Burundi President Ndayishimiye on becoming chair of the African Union. The prime minister said he and Uganda Vice President Alupo discussed ways to deepen bilateral cooperation in healthcare, agriculture, digital technologies and capacity building.
