President Murmu concludes her two-nation visit to Surinam, Serbia

President Droupadi Murmu on Friday wrapped up her six-day state visit to Suriname and Serbia during which she held wide-ranging talks with the top leaders to reaffirm India's strong bilateral relations with the two countries.

President Murmu arrived in Suriname on Sunday on a three-day visit -- her first since assuming office in July last year -- where she met her Suriname counterpart Chandrikapersad Santokhi and discussed ways to deepen bilateral cooperation in several areas including defence, IT and capacity building.

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From Suriname, the president arrived in Serbia on Wednesday for the second and final leg of her visit at the invitation of Aleksandar Vucic, the President of Serbia.

This was her first visit to Europe, and the first-ever visit by a Head of State of either country, a statement from the Ministry of External Affairs said.

The President's State Visit has reaffirmed the strong relations between India and Serbia. The visit is expected to provide fresh momentum to our ties, especially on the economic front, the statement said.

President Murmu paid floral tributes to the bust of Mahatma Gandhi in Belgrade and also interacted with the Indian community.

In her address, she highlighted the emergence of India as an economic power and the myriad of opportunities that it offers and called upon them to contribute positively towards strengthening the India-Serbia relationship, the statement said.

The President's engagements on Thursday included a ceremonial Guard of Honour at Serbia Palace, followed by restricted-level talks, bilateral delegation-level talks, a joint address to the media, an address to a joint business event, a call-on by Dr Vladimir Orlic, the Speaker of the National Assembly of Serbia, and laying of a wreath at the ‘Monument to the Unknown Hero’, atop Mount Avala.

Vucic expressed his condolences for the loss of lives in the train accident in Odisha that left 288 people dead and more than 1,200 injured.

He reiterated Serbia’s stand on the territorial integrity and sovereignty of nations.

During her meeting with Vucic, discussions revolved around potential mutual engagements in sectors, including defence and military-tech cooperation, pharmaceuticals, agriculture, industrial cooperation, information technology, AI, and cultural cooperation, including film production and cinematography.

Ana Brnabic, the Prime Minister of Serbia, also hosted a luncheon in honour of President Murmu, during which discussions revolved around potential cooperation in trade, economics, tourism, and culture. She showed keen interest in digitalization and cyber security, the statement said.

During the call on by the Speaker of the National Assembly Dr Vladimir Orlic, the President highlighted the need for exchanges of parliamentarians.