Nordic nations welcome India’s application for membrship of NSG

Speed Post News Network

New Delhi : Prime Minister of India Narendra Modi, Prime Minister of Denmark Lars Løkke Rasmussen, Prime Minister of Finland Juha Sipilä, Prime Minister of Iceland Katrín Jakobsdóttir, Prime Minister of Norway Erna Solberg and Prime Minister of Sweden Stefan Löfven held a Summit at  Stockholm, Sweden, on April 18, 2018. It was hosted by Swedish Prime Minister and the Indian Prime Minister.
During the Summit, the Prime Ministers pledged to deepen cooperation between the Nordic countries and India, and focused their discussions on key issues related to global security, economic growth, innovation and climate change. They reaffirmed the importance of free trade as a catalyst for achieving inclusive growth and realising the Sustainable Development Goals.
The Prime Ministers acknowledged that innovation and digital transformation drive growth in an interconnected world, and underpin a growing engagement between the Nordic countries and India. The role of the Nordic countries as global innovation leaders was underlined. The Nordic approach to innovation systems characterised by a strong collaboration between public sector, private sector and academia, was discussed, and synergies were identified with India’s rich pool of talent and skills.
The Summit emphasised the Indian Government’s strong commitment to innovation and digital initiatives as key to prosperity and sustainable development with national flagship programmes such as Make in India, Startup India, Digital India and Clean India. Nordic solutions in clean technologies, maritime solutions, port modernisation, food processing, health, life-sciences and agriculture were mentioned. The Summit welcomed the Nordic Sustainable Cities Project aimed at supporting the Smart Cities Program of the Government of India. The Ease of Doing Business practices were emphasised as a priority for both the Nordic countries and India.
The Prime Ministers acknowledged that terrorism and violent extremism are major challenges for the international community. They discussed global security including cyber security based on their shared values of human rights, democracy and the rule of law, and their commitment to uphold the rules-based international system. They also discussed export control and non-proliferation. The Nordic countries welcomed India’s application for membership of the Nuclear Suppliers’ Group and reaffirmed their commitment to work constructively within the Group with the aim of reaching a positive outcome at the earliest opportunity.
The Prime Ministers reaffirmed their support for the United Nations and the Secretary-General’s reform efforts to ensure a UN fit to support Member States to deliver on Agenda 2030 and took note of his proposals to strengthen the UN including in the areas of development, peace operations, peacebuilding and conflict prevention. The Nordic countries and India reaffirmed the need for reform of the UN Security Council including its expansion in both permanent and non-permanent seats to make it more representative, accountable, effective and responsive to the realities of the 21st century.

The Nordic countries agree that India is a strong candidate for a permanent seat in a reformed Security Council expanded with both permanent and non-permanent members, according to a PIB release.
The Prime Ministers reaffirmed their full commitment to implementing the 2030 Agenda for sustainable development as well as the ambitious implementation of the Paris Agreement.They noted that women’s full and meaningful participation in political, social and economic life is key to inclusive development and agreed to promote the empowerment of women.