PM Modi leaves for U.S. after day-long Switzerland visit

Geneva : Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday left from Geneva to Washington for the fourth leg of his five-nation trip to Afghanistan, Qatar, Switzerland, United States and Mexico.

Prime Minister Modi arrived in Geneva from Doha this morning after a day-long Qatar-visit on Sunday.

Prime Minister Modi held delegation-level talks with Switzerland President Johann Schneider Ammann in Geneva earlier.

Both sides are expected to have discussed issues of mutual interests, including trade investments, energy and infra structure sectors, besides India’s membership in the Nuclear Suppliers Group ( NSG) and black money during the talks.

Earlier, Prime Minister Modi and the Swiss President had restricted talks to further elevate the bilateral ties between the two sides to the next level.

He also held meetings with top Swiss business leaders and highlighted the strong economic ties between the two countries.

“Held detailed discussions with Swiss CEOs. Glad that economic linkages between our nations are strong & vibrant,” the Prime Minister tweeted.

Prime Minister Modi also told the business leaders that Switzerland can play a vital role in India’s development.

Before leaving for the US, Prime Minister Modi also met Indian students and scientists from the European Organization for Nuclear Research, known as CERN, in Geneva.

India and Switzerland have had cordial and friendly relations since India’s independence. Exchange of high-level visits in the recent past has provided an impetus to strengthen bilateral cooperation.

With growing bilateral trade and foreign investment, India and Switzerland enjoy strong economic ties.

Swiss-India bilateral trade nearly tripled from USD 1.6 billion in 2004 to USD 4.5 billion in 2011 even as the balance of trade has remained in favour of Switzerland.

From April 2000 to September 2015, Switzerland invested as FDI approximately USD 3.18 billion in India, thus becoming the 11th largest investor and accounting for about 1.2 percent of total FDI in India during this period. (ANI)