PM’s opening remarks at India-Sweden Virtual Summit

Namaskar Excellency! First of all, I would like to express my heartfelt condolences and on behalf of India for the loss of lives in Sweden from COVID-19. I would like to express solidarity with the Swedish people on behalf of all Indian citizens for the violent attack in Sweden a day before yesterday. We wish that those injured in the attack recover soon. Excellency, In 2018, Sweden held the first India-Nordic summit. At that time, I had the opportunity to come to Stockholm. I hope we will get a chance to meet again during the second India-Nordic summit soon. The visit of His Majesty the King and Her Majesty to India in 2019 was a great privilege for us. I had a very good discussion with them on many subjects. I vividly remember that His Majesty and I reviewed the collaboration about making crop stubble a briquette for use in power plants. You will be happy to know that its demonstration plant is doing a good job. Now we can use it to make coal from biomass and scale up extensively. Excellency, During COVID-19, we have recognized the importance of collaboration at both regional and global levels. India provided medicines and other essential equipment to more than 150 countries to support the world in the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic. Also, we shared our experiences with frontline health workers and policy makers from Asia, South-East Asia and Africa through online training programmes. We have also made available ‘Made in India’ vaccines to about 50 countries so far. We are committed to supplying vaccines to many more countries in the coming days. Excellency, In today’s environment, coordination, cooperation and collaboration between all like-minded countries have become more important. Shared values like democracy, human rights, rule of law, equality, freedom, justice strengthen our relations and mutual cooperation. The important issue of climate change is a priority for both of our countries and we would like to work with you on this. India’s culture has always given importance to preservation of the environment and living in harmony with nature. We are firmly moving on our commitments made in the Paris Agreement. We will not only achieve these targets, but also exceed them. India has probably been able to make good progress on its commitments among the G20 countries. Our renewable power capacity has grown by 162 percent in the last five years. We have set a target of 450 gigawatts of renewable energy by 2030. We are saving 30 million tons of carbon dioxide emissions by promoting the use of LED lights. We welcome Sweden’s decision to join the International Solar Alliance. We also invite you to join the Coalition for Disaster Resilient Infrastructure soon. Excellency, The India-Sweden partnership can play an important role in post-COVID stabilization and recovery. We can deepen cooperation in the fields of innovation, technology, investment, start-ups and research. There is also a huge potential for enhancing cooperation in many areas, including smart cities, water treatment, waste management, circular economy, smart grids, e-mobility and digital transformation. I am confident that our Virtual Summit today will add new dimensions to our cooperation. Excellency, Once again, I recall the journey of India’s excellent friendship towards Swedish citizens and invite your opening remarks now.