Pacific Island meet: Ready to boost ties, says President Pranab Mukherjee

Delegates from Pacific Island nations have converged here for the second summit of the Forum for India-Pacific Islands Co-operation (FIPIC) being held at Jaipur on August 21.

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“We would be happy to work with you in harnessing your mineral, marine and hydrocarbon resources. Our Government and private sector are keen to strengthen and diversify our bilateral trade and encourage investments in fisheries, agriculture, oil and natural gas, mining and water desalination,” said the President.

The island nations participating in the second FIPIC summit include Fiji, Marshall Islands, Nauru, Niue, Palau, Papua New Guinea, Samoa, Tuvalu, Vanuatu, Cook Islands, Kiribati, Micronesia, Solomon Islands, Tonga.

“Towards this end, India’s annual grant-in-aid to each Pacific Island country has been enhanced from $125,000 to $200,000 last year. We hope this will support specific projects prioritised by you,” he said.

Modi will address the summit, which will be attended by heads of states or governments of at least nine countries of the grouping. “I welcome all the leaders and delegates who are coming to India for the Forum for India-Pacific Islands Cooperation,” tweeted Modi.