WARM WELCOMEFOR PM NARENDRA
MODI IN STOCKHOLM, SWEEDEN
The Prime Minister's
hectic day of meetings in the Sweden capital began with his reception by His
Majesty the King, with Crown Princess Victoria present.It may be a chilly
spring in Stockholm at this time of year but Prime Minister Narendra Modi was
warmly received by a wide section of Swedish society, from King Carl XVI Gustaf
and Swedish Prime Minister Stefan Löfven, to a euphoric throng of 1,100
students and diaspora members.Mr. Modi’s hectic day of meetings began with his reception
by His Majesty the King, with Crown Princess Victoria present, at 1p.m. IST,
following which he joined a bilateral discussion with Mr. Löfven at Sager
House, the official residence of the Prime Minister of Sweden.
After a working
luncheon there, the India-Sweden Innovation Partnership will be signed, and
further details of the bilateral agreement will be released publicly, including
on diverse areas of cooperation such as innovation, clean technology, waste
management, renewable energy, women’s development, and skill development.Shortly
after 4 p.m. IST Mr. Modi and Mr. Löfven will participate in a round table with
around 40 CEOs of major Swedish firms, following a reception at the Stockholm
City Hall by the President of the City Council and the Mayor of Stockholm. This
will likely include representatives of Volvo, Saab, Astrazeneca, and Ikea among
others.Swedish Minister for Enterprise and Innovation Mikael Damberg and
Minister for Housing and Digital Development Peter Ericsson will join this
meeting as representatives of the Swedish government.
From approximately 6:30
p.m. IST Mr. Modi will hold bilateral meetings with Nordic Prime Ministers,
including, in order, Denmark, Finland, Iceland and Norway. After this, they
will jointly speak with Mr. Modi and his team at the Nordic-Indian Summit,
focusing on issues such as clean technology.Capping off the group discussion
with dinner, Mr. Modi will then head to the University of Stockholm for an
address to the Indian diaspora at 9:30 p.m. IST, the final agenda item of a
packed day before leaving for airport to fly to London.
Sweden has been a
strong contributor to the Make In India initiative, Prime Minister Narendra
Modi said Tuesday in Stockholm, during the first bilateral visit by an Indian
premier to the Nordic nation in 30 years.Modi noted that his Swedish
counterpart, Stefan Lofven, had led a large
delegation to a Mumbai summit in 2016.Lofven, on his part, commended the Indian
government and its "strong focus on innovation as a key to progress and
prosperity."Prime Minister Modi is on the first leg of a five-day tour,
during which he'll attend the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM)
in the UK.In Stockholm, he spoke to CEOs about investment opportunities in
India and met children of Indian diaspora.
Prof. John Kurakar
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