NEW DELHI: Italian Foreign Minister, Luigi Di Maio, on Friday, expressed concern over the ongoing humanitarian crisis in Ukraine in a meeting with External Affairs Minister, Dr S Jaishankar.
For peace in Ukraine, actors like India are crucial, he said.
"I had a very productive meeting with my Indian colleague Dr Jaishankar. For peace in Ukraine actors like India are crucial. We strengthen our relationship across the board,’’ said Foreign Minister Maio.
Dr Jaishankar too responded by saying that the meeting was warm and productive.
"We noted our expanding cooperation in cyber security, science and technology and space sectors. We also agreed that increasing interest of Italian companies in make in India and transfer of technology will further advance our bilateral relationship,’’ said Jaishankar.
The two ministers underlined the importance to safeguard the international order based on the UN Charter, with special regard to the respect for sovereignty and territorial integrity.
Meanwhile, the talks focused on strengthening the India-Italy bilateral partnership in energy transition, security, and defence. The two ministers reiterated their commitment to closely work in countering common challenges related to terrorism, violent extremism, and cybercrime.
In the context of recent geopolitical developments, views were exchanged on Afghanistan and Indo-Pacific and cooperation in the multilateral forums including G20.
India-Italy Strategic Partnership on Energy Transition was announced last year during Prime Minister, Narendra Modi’s, visit to Italy and the two nations had agreed to explore partnerships in areas such as gas transportation, green hydrogen, biofuels and energy storage. In addition, they agreed to jointly organize an India - Italy Tech Summit on Energy Transition and Circular Economy, which will be held in Delhi on 17 November 2022.
Minister Maio also co-chaired a round table with Italian and Indian companies and spoke about concretizing the trade ties between business communities. He also met with India’s commerce Minister Piyush Goyal.
Yesterday, Maio visited Bengaluru where he met Chief Minister of Karnataka Basavaraj Bommai and inaugurated the premises of the new Consulate General of the Italian Republic. Minister Di Maio also visited the Indian Space Research Organisation and the Indian Institute of Science along with their Italian counterparts, the Italian Space Agency and Elettra Sinctrotrone Trieste, with which scientific partnerships and joint projects are being developed.