India and Somalia hold first Foreign Office Consultations after signing consultations MoU on November 14, with piracy in focus
India and Somalia held the first round of Foreign Office Consultations (FOC) in Mogadishu on November 15. India's Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said the two sides discussed increased hijacking and piracy in the region and the need to counter these effectively for the security of ships and the safety of seafarers.
The consultations were held pursuant to a Memorandum of Understanding on consultations between the two foreign ministries, signed in Mogadishu on November 14. The MoU was signed during MEA Secretary Sripriya Ranganathan's meeting with Somalia's Deputy Foreign Minister Hassan Mohamed Ali. The MEA said it provides a structured mechanism to regularly review the state and prospects of bilateral ties. The November 15 consultations were led on the Indian side by Joint Secretary Suresh Kumar M. and on the Somali side by Hamza Adan Haadoow, Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation.
Ranganathan also called on Somali President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud on November 14, conveying greetings from President Droupadi Murmu and Prime Minister Narendra Modi, and met Defence Minister Ahmed Moallim Fiqi to discuss strengthening defence cooperation. The High Commission of India in Kenya described the visit as the first high-level bilateral visit from India to Somalia in recent years. The two sides agreed to hold the next round of consultations in India at a mutually convenient date.
Source: Ministry of External Affairs of India
Published by GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
Photo: 图中是索马里首都摩加迪沙的海港。Atmis Somalia, CC0, via Wikimedia Commons
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