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Greece confers Grand Cross of the Order of Honour on PM Modi
The award ceremony was held at the presidential mansion in Athens soon after PM Modi arrived in the country, the first by an Indian premier in four decades
NEW DELHI: Greece on Friday conferred the Grand Cross of the Order of Honour, the country’s highest civilian order that can be awarded to a premier, on Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
The award was presented to Modi, the first Indian premier to visit Greece in four decades, by Greek President Katerina Sakellaropoulou. Modi is also the first foreign head of government to receive the honour.
On behalf of the people of India, Modi thanked the Greek president, the government and the people for this special honour. “I accepted the award on behalf of 140 crore Indians and expressed my gratitude,” he said at a subsequent media interaction.
The award ceremony was held at the presidential mansion in Athens soon after Modi arrived in the country for a day-long visit.
During Modi’s meeting with Sakellaropoulou, the two sides recalled the shared values of democracy, freedom and rule of law and discussed matters related to sustainable development, women-led development, India’s G20 presidency and the deepening of bilateral ties.
Earlier in the day, Modi paid tribute at the “Tomb of the Unknown Soldier” in Athens. He laid a wreath at the monument and inspected a ceremonial guard of honour.
Later, Modi attended a business lunch hosted by his Greek counterpart Kyriakos Mitsotakis that was also joined by leading Indian and Greek CEOs from sectors such as shipping, infrastructure and energy.
In his remarks at this event, Modi highlighted India’s progress in renewables, start-ups, pharmaceutical, IT, digital payments and infrastructure and acknowledged the role played by industry leaders in strengthening bilateral ties and promoting economic cooperation.
