At the invitation of the President of the Hellenic Republic, His Excellency Mr. Prokopis Pavlopoulos, the President of the Republic of India, His Excellency Shri Ram Nath Kovind is on a State Visit to the Hellenic Republic from 16-19 June, 2018. President
Kovind is accompanied by Shri Vishnu Deo Sai, Minister of State for Steel, Members of Parliament and senior officials of Government of India.
The visit is part of the regular high level exchanges between the two countries. Greek PM Karamanlis was on a State Visit to India in 2008 and Greek PM Papandreou visited Indiain 2010 for Delhi Sustainable Development Summit.President Dr A.P.J. Abdul Kalam
paid a State Visit to Greece in 2007.
During the visit, President Kovind was accorded a ceremonial welcome at the Presidential Mansion. President Kovind laid wreaths at the monument of ‘Unknown Soldier’ at Syntagma Square. President Pavlopoulos held a meeting with President Kovind and also hosted
a banquet in the honor of President Kovind. The Prime Minister of the Hellenic Republic, His Excellency Mr. Alexis Tsipras paid a courtesy call on President Kovind. The Leader of the Opposition, Mr. Kyriakos Mitsotakis separately called on President Kovind.
The President will also lay wreaths at the Phaleron Indian Cremation Memorial later in the evening, where the remains of74 soldiers of undivided India, who had sacrificed their lives in the campaign in Greece during the World War II, were laid to rest.
An India-Greece CEO’s meeting will be held on 19 June 2018. The business meeting is being attended by an Indian business delegation comprising 31business representatives and a large number of Greek businesspersons representing the sectors of information technology,
electronics, real estate, agriculture, tourism, food processing etc. President Kovind will address the business leaders at a Breakfast Meeting.
President Kovind will also address the Hellenic Foundation for Europe and Foreign Policy (ELIAMEP) and speakon the topic ‘India and Europe in a Changing World’. ELIAMEP is a leading Greek think tank and provides a forum for public debate on issues of European
integration and international relations.
During his discussion with Greek Leaders, President Kovind highlighted the constructive cooperation between the two nations on international and bilateral issues. He expressed India’s resolve to strengthen the close ties and longstanding friendship between
the two countries, especially in view of the upcoming 70th Anniversary of the establishment of bilateral diplomatic relations in 2020.
The two sides agreed to continue consultations and cooperation on issues of common interest in UN and other multilateral fora.
The Leaders appreciated the bilateral economic cooperation between the two countries and expressed satisfaction that bilateral trade stood at over half a billion US Dollars. Leaders committed to work together to achieve the vast untapped potential. They noted
the presence of Indian companies in infrastructure, pharmaceuticals and steel sectors in Greece and of Greek companies in the fields of IT and construction in India. They were of the view that sectors such as agriculture, shipping and tourism also offer scope
for cooperation.
President Kovind thanked Greece for the invitation to India to participate as "Honored Country” in the Thessaloniki International Fair 2019 and confirmed India’s acceptance of the invitation.
Three Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) namely; (i) the MoU between Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) and National Quality Infrastructure System/Hellenic Organization for Standardization on Cooperation in the Fields of Standardization; (ii) MoU between Foreign
Service Institute (FSI), India and Diplomatic Academy, Greece on Cooperation in Diplomatic Training and (iii) the Programme of Cultural Cooperation for the year 2018-2020 between India and Greece,were signed during the visit.
Both sides expressed satisfaction with regular high-level contacts between the two countries that further deepen bilateral ties between the two nations.
President Kovind thanked President Pavlopoulos for the warm welcome and hospitality extended to him and his delegation.
Athens
June 18, 2018