The relationship between India and the countries of Latin America and the Caribbean has taken a new direction over the past nine years under Prime Minister Narendra Modi, according to Minister of External Affairs S. Jaishankar.
Jaishankar emphasised the expanding people-to-people ties between India and the Latin American and Caribbean regions as well as the booming bilateral trade between the two countries. In the nation’s capital, he was giving a speech at the 9th Confederation of Indian Industry-LAC Conclave.
Addressing the event, Jaishankar said, “Over the last nine years since PM Modi has been at the helm, our ties have moved on a new trajectory. India’s relationship with the region is being nurtured across the full spectrum. Latin America and Caribbean regions have witnessed notable engagements with 34 high-level visits which include six visits each from the President and the Vice President and four from the Prime Minister.”
“The most recent of course, among them has been the visit of our president to Suriname, where she was conferred the country’s highest order,” he added.
The minister for external affairs stressed further that he has made frequent trips to the area and that if it weren’t for two years of COVID, those trips may have been more frequent.
“I anticipate being in Cuba next month, and I continue to hold out the utmost hope that this may present me with other options. However, I’ve already been to Mexico, Brazil, Argentina, and more recently, Guyana, Panama, Colombia, and the Dominican Republic,” he remarked.