Indian envoy Abhay Kumar reviews bilateral ties with Madagascar PM

Antananarivo [Madagascar], June 9 (ANI): India's Ambassador to Madagascar and Comoros, Abhay Kumar called on Prime Minister of Madagascar Christian Ntsay on Thursday where they reviewed the progress made in bilateral ties between both the countries.

Madagascar's Foreign Minister Richard Randriamandrato visited India in April 2022 to attend the Raisina Dialogue and had a bilateral meeting with External Affairs Minister Dr S. Jaishankar.

Meanwhile, India on June 3 announced a donation of 15,000 bicycles to Madagascar on the occasion of World Bicycle Day. India is also going to donate 5,000 metric tonnes of rice to Madagascar soon.

India considers Madagascar as a vital pole in the collaborative maritime vision of SAGAR (Security and Growth for All in the Region).

Minister of National Defence of Madagascar, Lt. General Rakotonirina Leon Jean Richard led a 4-member delegation to participate in Aero India 2021 and Indian Ocean Region (IOR) Defence Ministers' Conclave in Bengaluru from February 3-5, 2021.

During the visit, the Malagasy Defence Minister held a bilateral meeting with Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and discussed steps for furthering defence cooperation between the two countries.

Ten diplomats from Madagascar participated in the 1st Special Course for Diplomats in the Indian Ocean Region from September 19 to October 2, 2021 organised by the Sushma Swaraj Institute of Foreign Service.

As a goodwill gesture, and in response to the appeal made by the Government of Madagascar to provide humanitarian assistance to deal with its drought situation, 1000 tonnes of rice and 100,000 tablets of hydroxychloroquine were despatched on board by INS Jalashwa in March 2021 as humanitarian assistance. (ANI)

Source: WORLD