External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar will visit the Republic of Cyprus and Austria from December 29 to January 3, an official statement said on Wednesday. In a statement, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said the minister will be in Republic of Cyprus (RoC) from December 29 to December 31, 2022. This year marks 60 years of diplomatic relations between India and Cyprus.
During his visit, Jaishankar will meet the Minister of Foreign Affairs of RoC, Ioannis Kasoulides, and also call on the President of the House of Representatives, Annita Demetriou. He will also address the business and investment community of that country, and interact with the Indian diaspora.
Separately, in a statement, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of RoC said the focus of the discussions between the two ministers will be the bilateral relations and the prospect of further deepening the cooperation between Cyprus and India in a wide range of sectors, economic cooperation of the two countries, EU-India relations, prospect of India's participation in a regional mechanism with countries of the region, "Turkey's provocative actions against Cyprus" as well as current regional and international issues of mutual interest.
The two ministers will sign a Memorandum of Understanding on defense and military cooperation, as well as the document for the inclusion of Cyprus in the Global Solar Energy Alliance. Minister of Interior Nikos Nouris will also sign with the EAM a Declaration of Intent to start negotiations with the aim of reaching an agreement regarding immigration and mobility.
On December 30, the two ministers will address the Cyprus-India business forum that will take place in Limassol in the presence of representatives of the Cyprus and Indian business sectors. In Austria, the external affairs minister will meet Austrian Federal Minister for European and International Affairs, Alexander Schallenberg, the MEA statement said.
This will be the first EAM-level visit from India to Austria in the last 27 years, and it takes place against the backdrop of 75 years of diplomatic relations between the two countries in 2023. Schallenberg had visited India in March 2022, and the two ministers have met thrice this year on the margins of international gatherings in Munich, Bratislava and New York, the MEA said. During his visit, Jaishankar will call on Austrian Chancellor Karl Nehammer, and also interact with the Indian diaspora. Separately, he will meet Rafael Mariano Grossi, Director General of the Vienna-based International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA).
In Austria, the EAM will also meet foreign minister of the Czech Republic, Jan Lipavský; Foreign Minister of Slovak Republic, Rastislav Kácer along with Austrian Federal Minister Schallenberg in the Slavkov format. Discussions are expected to focus on regional and global issues, the statement added.
