Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday said the ongoing conflicts in Ukraine and West Asia are a matter of deep concern and India supports dialogue and diplomacy for the early restoration of peace and stability, and is ready to provide all possible cooperation along with its friendly countries.

Addressing a press meet with Poland’s Prime Minister Donald Tusk in Warsaw, Mr Modi said the loss of innocent lives in any crisis has become the biggest challenge for the entire humanity. India firmly believes that no problem can be solved on the battlefield.

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The Polish Prime Minister said India can play an essential, constructive role in resolving the Russia-Ukraine war. “The entire world praises India because India’s government is very democratic. We don’t see much of this in that part of the world,” he said.

Mr Modi said “this year we celebrate 70 years of our diplomatic relations. On this occasion, we have decided to reshape our relationship into a Strategic Partnership. The relations between India and Poland are based on shared values such as democracy and rule of law.”

“As two democratic countries, exchanges between our parliaments should be encouraged. Efforts will be made to connect the private sector to broaden economic cooperation. Poland is among the world leaders in food processing,” Mr Modi said.

“We want Polish companies to join the Mega Food Parks being built in India.
In India rapid urbanization is opening up new opportunities for our cooperation in areas such as water treatment, solid waste management, and urban infrastructure,” he said.

Mr Modi said Clean Coal Technology, Green Hydrogen, Renewable Energy, Artificial Intelligence are also our common priorities. “We invite Polish companies to join Make in India and Make for the World. India has achieved many accomplishments in areas such as FinTech, Pharma, space,” he said.

“We would be happy to share our experience in these areas with Poland. Close cooperation in the field of defence is a symbol of our deep mutual trust. Mutual cooperation in this area will be strengthened,” Mr Modi said.

The Prime Minister said “We both agree that to meet the global challenges, reform in the United Nations and international institutions is the need of the hour.”

He said “Terrorism is a big challenge for us. More such cooperation is required between countries like India and Poland which believe in humanity. Similarly, climate change is a matter of shared priority for us,” he said.

On the second day of his Poland visit, the Prime Minister held separate delegation-level talks with Poland President Andrzej Duda and Poland Prime Minister Donald Tusk.

Mr Modi had a bilateral meeting with Mr Tusk also. Mr Modi was given a ceremonial welcome at the Chancellery where his Polish counterpart received him.

The two leaders held talks at the Chancellery in restricted and delegation-level formats, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said. Given the salience of India-Poland ties, the leaders decided to upgrade the relationship to a ‘Strategic Partnership’.

They engaged in wide-ranging discussions on various aspects of the bilateral partnership, including trade and investment, science and technology, defence and security, cultural cooperation, and people-to-people ties.

MEA said the two leaders agreed that there were significant opportunities available for economic and business collaboration in sectors such as food processing, urban infrastructure, water, solid waste management, electric vehicles, green hydrogen, renewable energy, AI, mining and in clean technologies.

The leaders also discussed important regional and global issues of mutual interest including the conflicts in Ukraine and West Asia, MEA said. They exchanged views on reform of the United Nations and other international institutions, climate change action and threats posed by terrorism.

A Joint Statement and an Action Plan (2024-2028) for the implementation of the India-Poland Strategic Partnership were issued after the meeting.

At the ceremonial welcome, the Prime Minister said “I want to thank PM #DonaldTusk for giving me a warm welcome in the beautiful city of Warsaw. You have been a friend of India for a long time and you have made a huge contribution to enhancing the relationship between India and Poland