Prime Minister Narendra Modi will be in Bangkok on April 3 and 4 for a meeting with his Thai counterpart and the BIMSTEC Summit, before heading to Sri Lanka for a State visit from April 4 to 6.
The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said in a statement Friday: “At the invitation of the Prime Minister of Thailand, Paetongtarn Shinawatra, Prime Minister Narendra Modi will visit Bangkok, Thailand, from 3-4 April 2025 to participate in the 6th BIMSTEC Summit to be held on 4 April 2025, hosted by Thailand, the current BIMSTEC Chair, and for an Official Visit.”
PM Modi is scheduled to meet Thai PM Shinawatra on April 3. The leaders are expected to review bilateral cooperation and chart the way ahead for the partnership.
This will be the Prime Minister’s third visit to Thailand and the first physical meeting of the leaders of the Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation since the 4th BIMSTEC Summit, held in Kathmandu in 2018. The 5th BIMSTEC Summit, in Colombo, was conducted virtually on March 22.
Leaders from all the BIMSTEC countries — India, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Myanmar, Nepal and Bhutan — will discuss collaboration within the regional forum during the summit’s key meeting
“India has been taking a number of initiatives in BIMSTEC to strengthen regional cooperation and partnership, including in enhancing security; facilitating trade and investment; establishing physical, maritime and digital connectivity; collaborating in food, energy, climate and human security; and enhancing people-to-people ties,” the MEA statement said.
The PM will then travel to Sri Lanka on a State visit at the invitation of Sri Lankan President Anura Kumara Dissanayake, who had visited New Delhi in December last year.
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They will review progress made on the areas of cooperation agreed upon in the “joint vision” that was adopted during the Sri Lankan President’s State visit to India.
The Prime Minister will also travel to Anuradhapura for the inauguration of development projects implemented with Indian financial assistance. Modi had last visited Sri Lanka in 2019.
The Prime Minister’s visit to Thailand and Sri Lanka, and his participation in the 6th BIMSTEC Summit will reaffirm India’s commitment to its ‘Neighbourhood First’ policy, ‘Act East’ policy, ‘MAHASAGAR’ (Mutual and Holistic Advancement for Security and Growth Across Regions) vision, and vision of the Indo-Pacific,” MEA added.
Modi had announced the vision of ‘MAHASAGAR’ or “Mutual and Holistic Advancement for Security and Growth Across Regions” for India’s engagement with the Global South during his recent visit to Mauritius.
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