Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Swiss President Guy Parmelin will hold bilateral discussions in New Delhi today.

President Parmelin will be on a three-day state visit to India, accompanied by a high-level delegation comprising senior officials and business leaders.

Prime Minister Modi and President Parmelin will review progress in bilateral cooperation across a wide range of areas, including trade and investment, science, technology and innovation, mobility, culture, and people-to-people contact.

The leaders will also exchange views on regional and global developments, including cooperation in multilateral fora. President Parmelin will meet President Droupadi Murmu this evening.

External Affairs Minister Dr S. Jaishankar will also call on President Parmelin.

Akashvani correspondent reports that this is President Parmelin’s first state visit to India and second visit this year. Earlier, in February, the Swiss President visited India to participate in the AI Impact Summit in New Delhi.

The visit assumes added significance in view of his participation in the 2nd India-EFTA Prosperity Summit on the 7th of this month to mark the first anniversary of the India-EFTA Trade and Economic Partnership Agreement coming into force.

Among EFTA countries, Switzerland is the largest trade and investment partner of India. India and Switzerland share longstanding friendly relations.

This visit will further strengthen bilateral relations, building upon the regular high-level exchanges and deepen cooperation in new areas of mutual interest.