PM Modi meets Norwegian counterpart in Denmark, discusses ways to deepen developmental cooperation

Copenhagen, May 4 (PTI) Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday met his Norwegian counterpart Jonas Gahr Store here and the two leaders took stock of the full range of bilateral relations, discussed ways to deepen developmental cooperation and exchanged views on regional and global developments.

Modi, who arrived here on Tuesday from Berlin on the second leg of his visit to three European nations, met Store on the sidelines of the second India-Nordic Summit in the Danish capital.

"Had a productive meeting with PM @jonasgahrstore of Norway. Our talks included furthering cooperation in sectors such as the blue economy, clean energy, space, healthcare and more. Norway is a key pillar of India's recently announced Arctic Policy," Modi tweeted.

The two leaders took stock of the full range of bilateral relations and discussed ways to deepen developmental cooperation.

This was the first meeting between the two leaders since the assumption of office by Prime Minister Store in October 2021.

Prime Minister Store said that India is an emerging power and its economy is set to grow rapidly in the time ahead, according to his office.

"In today's meeting, we discussed cooperation in areas such as ocean management, climate action and renewable energy, and we agreed to establish a joint task force on energy," he said.

"Prime Minister Modi expressed a strong interest in Norwegian services, products and investment, and I see India as an important market for Norwegian companies," Store added.

In a press release, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said that both Prime Ministers reviewed the ongoing activities in bilateral relations and discussed future areas of cooperation.

Discussions also took place on regional and global developments. As members of UN Security Council, India and Norway have been engaging with each other in the UN on global issues of mutual interest, the release said.

Modi's visit comes amid the Ukraine crisis, which has united much of Europe against Russia.

"Prime Minister highlighted that Norway's skills and India's scope provided natural complementarities. Both leaders discussed the potential for deepening engagement in areas like Blue Economy, renewable energy, green hydrogen, solar and wind projects, green shipping, fisheries, water management, rainwater harvesting, space cooperation, long term Infrastructure investment, health and culture," the MEA said.

Later, Modi attended the 2nd India-Nordic Summit along with Prime Ministers of Denmark, Iceland, Finland, Sweden and Norway where they discussed the destabilising effect of the conflict in Ukraine and its broader regional and global implications as they agreed to remain closely engaged on the issue.

"Norway and the other Nordic countries reiterated our strong condemnation of Russia's war against Ukraine. We emphasised that the war is not just a European concern; it will have far-reaching global repercussions, including reduced food security and energy security. However, the Nordic countries and India clearly have different starting points and perspectives. For this reason, it was important to discuss the situation in depth," Prime Minister Store said.

He said Prime Minister Modi "listened carefully to our views and it was evident that he understood why we are reacting so strongly to Russia's actions in Ukraine."

India's trade with Nordic countries stands at over USD 5 billion (2020-21) and a cumulative FDI of over USD 3 billion (April 2000- March 2021).