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Published July 9, 2016
SOURCE: THE HINDU
Showcasing India as an attractive destination for defence production, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday sought deeper collaboration in the sector with South Africa, a major arms exporter, even as he thanked it for supporting India’s bid for membership of Nuclear Suppliers Group.
On the second leg of a four-nation African tour, Modi held wide-ranging talks with South African President Jacob Zuma during which both sides decided to ramp up their traditional ties by boosting trade and investment ties, especially in manufacturing, mining, renewable energy and pharma sectors.
The two countries also agreed to bolster defence and security cooperation and vowed to cooperate “actively” in dealing with terrorism, besides working closely at multilateral fora.
After the talks, a total of four agreements were inked to expand ties in areas of information technology, arts and culture, tourism and science and technology.
“I thanked the President for South Africa’s support to India’s membership (bid) of the Nuclear Suppliers Group. We know that we can count on the active support of our friends, like South Africa,” Modi said at a joint media interaction with Zuma after the talks.
There were reports that South Africa was among countries which had reservations about India’s bid to join the 48-nation grouping when the issue came up for discussion at its plenary meeting in Seoul last month.
Pitching to take already close bilateral ties to new heights, both Modi and Zuma paid glowing tribute to “two liberation icons” — Nelson Mandela and Mahatma Gandhi.
“For me personally, this visit is an opportunity to pay homage to two of the greatest human souls to have ever walked this Earth – Mahatma Gandhi and Nelson Mandela,” Modi said.
He further said, “We stood together in our common fight against racial subjugation and colonialism. It was in South Africa that Gandhi found his true calling. He belongs as much to India as to South Africa.”
About opportunities in the defence sector, Modi said both countries can join hands in not only meeting needs of each other but also to respond to regional and global demand.
“Beyond economic ties, and links of business, trade and investment, we can also partner in the field of defence and security. Both, at the level of industry and for our strategic and security needs,” he said.
He said defence sector in India is one of the sectors witnessing a complete transformation and that it offers exciting opportunities.
“Our companies can also pool their capacities to jointly develop or manufacture defence equipments and platforms. And, not just to meet our defence needs, but also to respond to regional and global demand,” he said.
India last month had relaxed norms to allow 100 per cent FDI in defence sector.
Talking about combating terrorism, Modi said it attacks the very foundations of society and that both countries agreed to combat it with active cooperation.
“Terrorism is another shared threat that puts at risk the safety and security of our people. It attacks the very foundations of our society. The President and I agreed that our two nations need to stay vigilant and cooperate actively to combat terrorism, both in our region and in the world,” he said.
During the talks, Modi said the “full spectrum” of engagement between the two countries was reviewed and called for robust industry-to-industry ties for greater economic engagement.
He said the annual trade between the two countries has grown by over 300 per cent in last ten years and that about one fourth of India’s investments in Africa are in South Africa.
India is South Africa’s sixth-largest trading partner, with annual trade recording at USD 5.3 billion in 2015-16.
Holding that ties between India and South Africa have been a story of strong advances and concrete achievements, Modi said there was potential to ramp up cooperation in trade and investment, especially in areas of minerals and mining, chemicals and pharmaceuticals, manufacturing and information technology.
Zuma welcomed Modi to his “second home” and said both the leaders held discussion on a range of bilateral and international issues including reform of the UN Security Council.
He said both sides will work together in multilateral forums like IBSA, BRICS, G 20, G 77 among others.
Zuma said Modi’s visit would help in further enhancements of trade, investment and commercial ties with India, particularly in areas of deep mining, health, agro processing, waste management and infrastructure development.
“This is a very important visit,” he said.
Modi said India and South Africa were also working together to shape priorities of international agenda through IBSA (India, Brazil and South Africa) and BRICS. “I look forward to welcoming President Zuma in Goa for the BRICS Summit later this year, in October.”
Referring to closeness between India and South Africa, Modi said though it was his first first visit, “I already feel at home in this Rainbow Nation.”
The Prime Minister said he was convinced that industry to ind
SOURCE: THE HINDU
Showcasing India as an attractive destination for defence production, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday sought deeper collaboration in the sector with South Africa, a major arms exporter, even as he thanked it for supporting India’s bid for membership of Nuclear Suppliers Group.
On the second leg of a four-nation African tour, Modi held wide-ranging talks with South African President Jacob Zuma during which both sides decided to ramp up their traditional ties by boosting trade and investment ties, especially in manufacturing, mining, renewable energy and pharma sectors.
The two countries also agreed to bolster defence and security cooperation and vowed to cooperate “actively” in dealing with terrorism, besides working closely at multilateral fora.
After the talks, a total of four agreements were inked to expand ties in areas of information technology, arts and culture, tourism and science and technology.
“I thanked the President for South Africa’s support to India’s membership (bid) of the Nuclear Suppliers Group. We know that we can count on the active support of our friends, like South Africa,” Modi said at a joint media interaction with Zuma after the talks.
There were reports that South Africa was among countries which had reservations about India’s bid to join the 48-nation grouping when the issue came up for discussion at its plenary meeting in Seoul last month.
Pitching to take already close bilateral ties to new heights, both Modi and Zuma paid glowing tribute to “two liberation icons” — Nelson Mandela and Mahatma Gandhi.
“For me personally, this visit is an opportunity to pay homage to two of the greatest human souls to have ever walked this Earth – Mahatma Gandhi and Nelson Mandela,” Modi said.
He further said, “We stood together in our common fight against racial subjugation and colonialism. It was in South Africa that Gandhi found his true calling. He belongs as much to India as to South Africa.”
About opportunities in the defence sector, Modi said both countries can join hands in not only meeting needs of each other but also to respond to regional and global demand.
“Beyond economic ties, and links of business, trade and investment, we can also partner in the field of defence and security. Both, at the level of industry and for our strategic and security needs,” he said.
He said defence sector in India is one of the sectors witnessing a complete transformation and that it offers exciting opportunities.
“Our companies can also pool their capacities to jointly develop or manufacture defence equipments and platforms. And, not just to meet our defence needs, but also to respond to regional and global demand,” he said.
India last month had relaxed norms to allow 100 per cent FDI in defence sector.
Talking about combating terrorism, Modi said it attacks the very foundations of society and that both countries agreed to combat it with active cooperation.
“Terrorism is another shared threat that puts at risk the safety and security of our people. It attacks the very foundations of our society. The President and I agreed that our two nations need to stay vigilant and cooperate actively to combat terrorism, both in our region and in the world,” he said.
During the talks, Modi said the “full spectrum” of engagement between the two countries was reviewed and called for robust industry-to-industry ties for greater economic engagement.
He said the annual trade between the two countries has grown by over 300 per cent in last ten years and that about one fourth of India’s investments in Africa are in South Africa.
India is South Africa’s sixth-largest trading partner, with annual trade recording at USD 5.3 billion in 2015-16.
Holding that ties between India and South Africa have been a story of strong advances and concrete achievements, Modi said there was potential to ramp up cooperation in trade and investment, especially in areas of minerals and mining, chemicals and pharmaceuticals, manufacturing and information technology.
Zuma welcomed Modi to his “second home” and said both the leaders held discussion on a range of bilateral and international issues including reform of the UN Security Council.
He said both sides will work together in multilateral forums like IBSA, BRICS, G 20, G 77 among others.
Zuma said Modi’s visit would help in further enhancements of trade, investment and commercial ties with India, particularly in areas of deep mining, health, agro processing, waste management and infrastructure development.
“This is a very important visit,” he said.
Modi said India and South Africa were also working together to shape priorities of international agenda through IBSA (India, Brazil and South Africa) and BRICS. “I look forward to welcoming President Zuma in Goa for the BRICS Summit later this year, in October.”
Referring to closeness between India and South Africa, Modi said though it was his first first visit, “I already feel at home in this Rainbow Nation.”
The Prime Minister said he was convinced that industry to ind
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