Last updated: August 21, 2023 |
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8:22 p.m. |
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Prime Minister Narendra Modi will leave tomorrow for a visit to South Africa and Greece. Speaking to the media in New Delhi today, Foreign Minister Vinay Mohan Kwatra said the Prime Minister will leave tomorrow morning for Johannesburg where he will attend the 15th BRICS summit which begins tomorrow and ends on August 24. He informed that tomorrow evening, Mr. Modi would attend the BRICS Leaders’ Retreat where discussions are expected on the worrying developments globally. Mr Kwatra added that on Wednesday, the Prime Minister will attend the BRICS summit which will focus on intra-BRICS cooperation, reform of the multilateral system and fight against terrorism. He further informed that on the 24th, the Prime Minister would participate in the BRICS Africa Outreach and BRICS Plus Dialogue.
Mr Kwatra said Mr Modi visited South Africa in July 2016 and July 2018. He said South Africa is the outgoing chair of BRICS and this will be the first in-person BRICS summit since 2019. The Foreign Minister said that for the 15th BRICS Summit, a delegation of Indian businesses will also visit South Africa to attend the BRICS Business Tracks meetings as well as the BRICS Business Council meetings, the BRICS Women Business Alliance and the BRICS Business Forum.
Mr. Kwatra informed that after completing his engagements in Johannesburg, the Prime Minister will travel to Greece for an official visit on August 25 at the invitation of the Greek Prime Minister. He said there would be a welcoming ceremony for the Prime Minister in Athens. The foreign minister added that Mr Modi would visit the Tomb of the Unknown Soldiers and meet business and Indian diaspora leaders. He noted that the last visit of the Indian Prime Minister to Greece was in 1983. Mr. Kwatra said that Greece is one of India’s important European partners. He added that India and Greece are not only modern democracies, but also share close and centuries-old historical and cultural relations.
