Article Posted on : - Aug 23, 2024

Prime Minister Narendra Modi with the President of Poland Andrzej Duda during a meeting, in Warsaw, Poland, Thursday, Aug. 22, 2024. A PTI Photo

WARSAW (PTI): India and Poland have upgraded their ties to the level of a "strategic partnership" and inked a social security pact to promote the mobility of skilled workers following wide-ranging talks between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his Polish counterpart Donald Tusk.

In the meeting on Thursday, both sides vowed to significantly expand the bilateral defence and security ties with Tusk expressing Warsaw's eagerness to be a key partner in New Delhi's aim to boost domestic defence production and modernise its armed forces.

Modi arrived in this Polish capital on Wednesday, in the first visit by an Indian prime minister to Poland in nearly half a century. In the second leg of his two-nation trip, Modi will be in Kyiv for around seven hours on Friday.

The prime minister also held talks with Polish President Andrzej Duda.

Following the Modi-Tusk talks, the two sides unveiled a five-year "Action Plan" (2024-2028) for the India-Poland strategic partnership identifying a range of areas including defence, trade, agri-tech, energy, green technologies, infrastructure, pharmaceuticals and mining for cooperation.

"This year we celebrate 70 years of our diplomatic relations. On this occasion, we have decided to reshape our relation into a strategic partnership," Modi said in his media statement with Tusk by his side.

"Today we have identified several initiatives to give a new direction to our relations," he said.

The 'Action Plan' lists various priority areas for boosting engagement under different pillars including political and security cooperation, trade and investment, transport and connectivity, climate, energy, mining, science and technology and EU-India.

It specifically mentioned supporting the early conclusion of the ongoing India-EU trade and investment negotiations, the operationalisation of the India-EU Trade and Technology Council (TTC) and the implementation of the India-EU Connectivity partnership.

In his remarks, Modi said the social security agreement will promote the mobility of the workforce and ensure their welfare.

The prime minister also thanked Poland for facilitating the evacuation of Indian students from Ukraine after the conflict began in 2022.

Tusk said Poland wants to expand its defence cooperation with India. "We are ready to take part in the modernisation of military equipment."

A joint statement said both sides recognised the need to strengthen and deepen cooperation in the defence sector.

To this end, they agreed to fully utilise existing bilateral mechanisms, including the Joint Working Group for Defence Cooperation.

Modi said both sides identified several initiatives to give a new direction to the relations.

"Efforts will be made to connect the private sector to broaden economic cooperation," he said.

"Poland is among the world leaders in food processing. We want Polish companies to join the Mega Food Parks being built in India," Modi said.

The prime minister said rapid urbanisation in India is opening up new opportunities for our cooperation in areas such as water treatment, solid waste management, and urban infrastructure.

"Clean coal technology, green hydrogen, renewable energy, and artificial intelligence are also our common priorities. We invite Polish companies to join Make in India and Make for the World," he said.

The two prime ministers emphasised the importance of connectivity and welcomed the commencement of direct flight connections between the two countries.

They also stressed the need for a further increase of direct flights connections to new destinations in both countries, the joint statement said.

The two leaders underscored that as the world's two largest democracies, the EU and India have a common interest in ensuring security, prosperity and sustainable development in a multi-polar world, the joint statement said.

"They reaffirmed their commitment to deepen India-EU strategic partnership, which would not only benefit both sides but also have a far-reaching positive impact globally," it said.

It said the two leaders expressed their commitment to peace and rules-based international order with the UN Charter at its core.

Modi and Tusk agreed that cooperation in the sphere of security in its multiple dimensions is vital during serious conflicts and tensions in various regions of the world.

"They reaffirmed their commitment to deepening bilateral, regional, and international cooperation for a more stable, prosperous, and sustainable world," the statement said.

The two prime ministers decided to enhance collaboration at multilateral forums to promote respect for rules-based international order and maintain global peace, stability, and security.

Modi and Tusk reiterated their unequivocal condemnation of terrorism in all its forms and emphasised that no country should provide a safe haven to those who finance, plan, support or commit terrorist acts, according to the statement.

Both sides stressed the need for firm implementation of relevant resolutions of the UN Security Council, the UN General Assembly, as well as the implementation of the UN Global Counter-Terrorism Strategy.

"They also reaffirmed the early adoption of the Comprehensive Convention on International Terrorism (CCIT)," the statement said.

Acknowledging the critical role of digitalisation in economic and social development, both sides agreed to bolster bilateral cooperation in this field, including in cybersecurity, to enhance stability and trust between the two countries.

In his remarks, Modi said both sides agreed that reform in the United Nations and other international institutions is the need of the hour to face various global challenges.

"Terrorism is a big challenge for us. More such cooperation is necessary between countries like India and Poland which believe in humanity," he said.

"Similarly, climate change is a matter of shared priority for us. We both will work for a green future by combining our capabilities," he said.

"Poland will assume the presidency of the European Union in January 2025. I am confident that your cooperation will strengthen the relations between India and the EU," he added.

Modi said India has achieved many achievements in areas such as fin-tech, pharma and space and it will be happy to share the experience with Poland.

On his meeting with Duda, the prime minister said on 'X': "We had an excellent discussion on ways to deepen India-Poland ties. India greatly values the warm relations with Poland. We look forward to boosting commercial and cultural linkages between our nations in the times to come."