Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico on Monday hailed India’s growth story, saying that it offers a valuable lesson for the European Union countries struggling to achieve 6-7 per cent economic growth.
In a joint press statement alongside Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Fico said, “We are struggling in the EU. What could the EU do if we could achieve 6-7 per cent growth?”
Despite global disruptions due to the West Asia conflict, India registered GDP growth at 7.7 per cent in fiscal year ended March.
The Slovak leader congratulated Modi for the progress India has made in various sectors, particularly AI and digitalisation.
“You (India) dominate in the field of digitalisation and the use of AI. You have come so far that you are faster than many advanced countries in different parts of the world,” he said.
Fico said Slovakia and India are linked by several common interests and expressed admiration for India’s achievements across multiple fields.
“Slovak Republic and India are countries which are connected by a number of common topics. I would like to congratulate India for the fantastic results which you are achieving,” he said.
He also expressed interest in greater cooperation with India in the sector of defence as both leaders agreed to elevate bilateral ties to a “comprehensive and strategic collaboration.”
“Today, we agreed with the Prime Minister to elevate the cooperation between India and Slovakia to be called a comprehensive and strategic collaboration,” he added.
Earlier in the day, Prime Minister Modi held delegation-level talks with his Slovak counterpart, in Bratislava during his visit to Slovakia, marking the first-ever visit by an Indian Prime Minister to the European nation.
The Indian delegation participating in the talks included External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar, National Security Advisor Ajit Doval, Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri, Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) Secretary (West) Sibi George and Additional Secretary in the MEA Puja Kapur.
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