INDIA & ITALY AGREE TO REVITALISE BILATERAL TIES

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THE NEWS

India and Italy have agreed to boost cooperation in counter-terrorism and cybersecurity during the meeting of External Affairs Minister (EAM) Sushma Swaraj with the top Italian leadership.

KEY-HIGHLIGHTS OF THE VISIT

  • On the first leg of her tour, she met with Italian counterpart Enzo MoaveroMilanesi. They exchanged views on regional and global issues of mutual interest.
  • Both the sides agreed to mutually identify new areas of cooperation to boost trade and investment linkages.
  • Both the leaders shared concerns relating to counter-terrorism and cybersecurity and agreed to continue cooperation in this area.
  • Indian EAM called on Italian Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte, who assumed charge early this month, and their discussion focused on forging bilateral cooperation across sectors and steps to revitalize the bilateral relationship.
  • She also conveyed the need for India and Italy to continue to work together and coordinate positions in multilateral forums.

OTHER IMPORTANT EVENTS

  • 70th Anniversary: The year 2018 marks the 70th year of establishment of diplomatic relations between India and Italy.
  • Both the sides welcomed the celebrations in both countries to mark 70 years of diplomatic relations and agreed to work together to build a robust and wide-ranging partnership covering political consultations, trade and commerce, science & technology, culture and people-to-people ties.
  • JCEC Meet: To extend collaboration in areas of mutual benefit, the Ministries agreed to hold the next meeting of the Joint Commission for Economic Cooperation (JCEC) in India later this year.
  • Tech Summit: Both countries also welcomed Italy’s participation as a partner country at the Tech Summit in India in November 2018, which would boost cooperation in technology and innovation.
  • Further, both leaders also welcomed the growing India-Italy convergence on contemporary global issues and agreed to enhance bilateral cooperation in multilateral forums.

INDIA-ITALY

  • India and Italy have been trading partners since the Roman era. Italy is among India’s top five trading partners in the EU and the 12th largest investor in India.
  • Indian diaspora: The Indian community in Italy is the second largest community of Indians in Europe after the United Kingdom.
  • The problem in ties: Ties between two countries took a hit after two Italian marines were arrested for allegedly killing two Indian fishermen off the coast of Kerala in 2012. It also impacted European Union’s relationship with India.

VISITS ON CARD

  • Indian External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj is on her seven-day tour from June 17-23  of four European nations- Italy, France, Luxembourg, and Belgium, which is aimed at deepening India’s strategic engagement and trade with the European countries.
    • France: Indian EAM will visit France, where she will meet her counterpart, Jean-Yves Le Drian and both the sides will review the bilateral relations. India and France are celebrating the 20th anniversary of their Strategic Partnership.
    • Luxembourg: Visit to Luxembourg will be the first ever by an Indian External Affairs Minister. She will meet the Grand Duke of Luxembourg, Henri Albert Gabriel Félix Marie Guillaume and Prime Minister Xavier Bettel there.
    • Belgium: Indian EAM will be in Belgium from June 20-23, where she will meet Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs of Didier Reynders.
  • This visit will provide an opportunity to hold in-depth discussions with political leadership on a wide range of global, regional, and bilateral issues and advance India’s growing strategic engagement with the European Union.

THE ROAD AHEAD:


Over the next few days, Indian EAM will visit other European nations to discuss issues related to India-EU free trade agreement (FTA). India and EU had been looking to resume stalled negotiations over some time, but uncertainties over Brexit and inflexibility on both sides prevented the resumption of formal talks. Indian EAM will deliver a keynote speech at the high-level event- “Climate, Peace, and Security: Time for Action”, lead the International Yoga Day celebrations at the European Parliament and also interact with the Indian community.

Source :- Chanakya IAS

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