New Delhi, Oct 2 (UNI) External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar on Saturday held a bilateral meeting with visiting Colombian Vice President and Foreign Minister Marta Lucia Ramirez during which the two held a comprehensive dialogue covering sectors such as health, pharmaceuticals, biotechnology and space and also discussed regional and international issues of mutual interest.
The EAM underlined India’s priorities with respect to UN reforms and both agreed to strengthen cooperation in multilateral fora, said an official statement.
The two leaders witnessed the signing of two Letters of Intent for cooperation in the fields of biotechnology and medical research. These were signed by the Department of Biotechnology and Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) with their Colombian counterparts.
In a tweet on the meeting, Jaishankar said the two held wide ranging talks on the expanding bilateral partnership and agreed to focus more on health, pharmaceuticals, biotechnology and space and also to give more impetus to trade and investment.
“Wide ranging discussions on our expanding partnership with Colombian VP and FM @mluciaramirez.
“Agreed to focus more on health, pharmaceuticals, biotechnology and space.
“Will give impetus to our trade and investment, especially energy, IT, pharma and auto sector.”
Later he also had a discussion on Indian electric vehicles with the visiting dignitary.
“Discussing the virtues of Indian electric vehicles with Colombian VP and FM
@mluciaramirez,” he tweeted.
Both sides agreed to work together to further promote trade and investment in energy, IT, pharmaceuticals and automobile sectors.
During the meeting, the two sides welcomed the recent momentum in high level engagements and agreed to enhance their cooperation in identified areas for mutual benefit, said a statement.
On Friday, the Colombian Vice President called on Vice President M. Venkaiah Naidu and extended an invitation to him to visit Colombia.
In tweets, Vice President Naidu said he had urged Colombia to join the International Solar Alliance.
“Shri Naidu noted that both countries have maintained an upward trajectory in trade despite global disruptions. He called for continued efforts to increase trade in potential sectors such as Information Technology, pharmaceuticals, automobiles & auto parts, chemicals and textiles.
“The Vice President invited Colombia to join the International Solar Alliance, a major initiative by India in the global efforts to combat climate change,” tweets from the Vice President’s office said.
On her meeting with Naidu, she posted: “With the Vice President of India,
@VPSecretariat, we converge on setting ambitious goals for 2030, taking advantage of all opportunities to create a productive ecosystem in agriculture, health, bioeconomy, renewable energy and aerospace industry.”
The Colombian dignitary is here at the head of a 48-member health and science and technology delegation from October 1-3.
On Friday, she held talks with officials of the Department of Biotechnology, and also with the Indian Council of Medical Research, Delhi.
In tweets, she said: “In Colombia, there are about 17,000 researchers, of which about 50% specialize in health. The COVID pandemic has shown us the importance of working as a team to face humanity's most difficult challenges.”
“We visited @ICMRDELHI, one of the oldest medical research institutions in the world. With more than 26 institutes and 6 research centers, it makes an invaluable contribution to improving public health, catalyzing economic development and achieving equity.”
She said in a tweet that she is accompanied by 13 entrepreneurs from the Colombian pharmaceutical laboratories and 6 academics, “aware of the importance of the alliance between the public and private sectors and academia, with common health and science purposes”.
She is accompanied by Dr. Luiz Fernando Ruiz, Minister of Health and Social Protection, government officials, representatives from business and educational institutions.
Jaishankar had earlier met Ramirez on the sidelines of UNGA-76 on September 25 in New York.
There has been a steady growth in bilateral trade between India and Colombia which stood at USD 2.27 billion in 2020-21, despite the disruptions caused by the Covid-19 pandemic.
Before the arrival of VP Ramirez, a business delegation headed by Dr. Luiz Fernando Ruiz, Minister of Health and Social Protection travelled to Pune, Hyderabad and Bengaluru from September 27-30. They visited centres of excellence and pharmaceutical companies in these cities with the objective of exploring co-production and technology transfers in the development of vaccines and pharmaceutical products.
They also visited the ISRO facilities and met representatives from New Space India Limited (NSIL) and the Human Space Flight Centre (HSFC).
UNI/RN