India and Nordic countries on Wednesday pledged to enhance multilateral and bilateral cooperation in areas like emerging technologies, green transition and climate change, peace, and security among others, as Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi met with prime ministers of Denmark, Sweden, Iceland, Finland as part of the second India-Nordic summit held in Copenhagen.

On the third and final day of his three-nation Europe visit, Modi said in a tweet, “The India-Nordic Summit gave a great platform to discuss ways to boost ties with the Nordic nations. The bilateral meetings with Nordic leaders were also productive. I look forward to working with them in various sectors aimed at furthering prosperity.”

The conflict in Ukraine among other issues was also discussed during the summit where Modi expressed “serious concern” about the ongoing humanitarian crisis, “unequivocally condemned” civilian deaths in Ukraine, and reiterated “the need for an immediate cessation of hostilities,” according to the joint statement issued by India’s Ministry of External Affairs.

Significantly, despite growing pressure, New Delhi has maintained its stance of avoiding any direct condemnation of Russia’s action while condemning the deaths of civilians without naming any countries.

“The Nordic Prime Ministers reiterated their strong condemnation of the unlawful and unprovoked aggression against Ukraine by Russian Forces,” read the joint statement, which also stated that the two sides (India and Nordic countries) agreed to remain engaged on the issue.

They also expressed their support for a rules-based international order, multilateral institutions, and their commitment to work towards making them more inclusive, transparent, and accountable with the aim of addressing global challenges more effectively.

Discussions were focused on key issues like international peace and security, green transition and climate change, the blue economy, innovation, and digitalization. Modi reaffirmed the importance of free trade as a driver for achieving inclusive growth and realizing the Sustainable Development Goals.

Terming the acceleration of the global green transition to combat climate change as “one of the greatest and most imminent global challenges”, leaders also underscored the potential for new growth opportunities and jobs in the successful transition.

Earlier today, Modi held separate meetings with Swedish Prime Minister Magdalena Andersson, Iceland’s Katrín Jakobsdóttir, Finland’s Sanna Marin and discussed various sectors for bilateral cooperation with their countries.

On the last leg of his visit that had earlier taken him to Germany in what is seen as a greater f0cus on Europe in India's foreign policy, Modi will meet French Prime Minister Emmanuel Macron in Paris, the first foreign leader to meet Macron since his re-election last week. Over the years, France has emerged as one of the closest strategic partners of India in Europe, as the two countries deepen their close in various sectors, including security and defense.

(SAM)