GG News Bureau
Gandhinagar, 9th Jan. The President of Timor-Leste, Dr. Jose Ramos Horta, is currently visiting India from 8th to 10th January 2024 to attend the 10th Vibrant Gujarat Global Summit in Gandhinagar. Today, Prime Minister Narendra Modi and President Horta met in Gandhinagar.
Prime Minister Modi reiterated India’s commitment to strengthen the connection between Delhi and Dili. In September 2023, he announced the opening of the Indian Mission in Timor-Leste. He offered assistance to Timor-Leste in various areas such as capacity building, human resource development, IT, fintech, energy, healthcare (including traditional medicine and pharma).
Additionally, he extended an invitation to Timor-Leste to join the International Solar Alliance (ISA) and the Coalition for Disaster Resilient Infrastructure (CDRI).
Prime Minister Modi also congratulated President Horta on ASEAN’s decision to admit Timor-Leste as its 11th member and expressed hope for its full membership in the near future.
President Horta expressed gratitude to the Prime Minister for the invitation to participate in the Summit and requested India’s support in meeting its development priorities, particularly in healthcare and IT capacity building. The two leaders also discussed regional issues and developments in the Indo-Pacific.
President Horta expressed strong support for India’s permanent membership in the UN Security Council, and both leaders pledged to continue their excellent cooperation in the multilateral arena. Prime Minister Modi appreciated Timor-Leste’s active participation in the Voice of Global South Summit. They agreed on the importance of countries in the Global South aligning their positions on global issues.
The bilateral relationship between India and Timor-Leste is based on shared values of democracy and plurality. India was one of the first countries to establish diplomatic ties with Timor-Leste in 2002.
