PM Modi thanks Japan’s Kishida for G7 invite as first leg of 3-nation tour ends

PM Modi, in a tweet, expressed his gratitude to PM Kishida and the people of Japan for their warm welcome and hospitality during his stay.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi concluded a successful visit to Japan Sunday, where he attended the summit of the G7 advanced economies on an invitation by his Japanese counterpart Fumio Kishida. PM Modi, in a tweet, expressed his gratitude to PM Kishida and the people of Japan for their warm welcome and hospitality during his stay. He also informed that he would be leaving for Papua New Guinea shortly.

Japan's Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, front right, Australia's Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, front left, Prime Minister Narendra Modi, back left, and U.S. President Joe Biden walk as they hold a Quad meeting on the sidelines of the G7 summit, at the Grand Prince Hotel in Hiroshima, Japan, Saturday.(AP)

Taking to Twitter, PM Modi wrote, “It has been a fruitful visit to Japan. Met several world leaders during the G-7 Summit and discussed a variety of issues with them. Gratitude to PM @kishida230, the Government and people of Japan for their warmth. Leaving for Papua New Guinea in a short while.”

The G7 summit was held in Japan’s Hiroshima, where PM Modi met several world leaders, including the United States president Joe Biden, UK PM Rishi Sunak, war-ravaged nation Ukraine’s head Volodymyr Zelensky, among others. On the sidelines of the G7 Summit, he also participated in the Quad summit, joined by other member nations US, Australia and Japan.

PM Modi hailed the Quad coalition and highlighted its importance in ensuring peace, stability and prosperity in the Indo-Pacific. In Hiroshima, he also unveiled a bust of Mahatma Gandhi, a symbol of Indian values of non-violence. During his visit, he interacted with the Indian diaspora in the island nation and met with a prominent Japanese artisan and a linguist, who promote Indian culture through their work.

The group of seven (G7) represent the world's richest democracies. It comprises of the US, France, the UK, Italy, Germany, Canada and Japan. Under its G7 presidency, Japan invited India and seven other countries to the summit.

On his three nation tour over a span of six days, PM Modi’s next destination is Papua New Guinea, where he will host the third summit of the ‘Forum for India-Pacific Islands Cooperation’ (FIPIC) on Monday jointly with the island country's PM James Marape.

On the final leg of his trip, PM Modi will set out for Australia, where the Quad meet was initially supposed to happen but was slashed after Biden cancelled his trip due to the stalled domestic debt ceiling negotiations. PM Modi will anyway proceed with the trip to hold bilateral talks with his counterpart Anthony Albanese.