India and Lithuania agree to deepen cultural and economic ties

In a meeting on July 16 on the sidelines of the 11th Asia-Europe Summit Meeting (ASEM) in Ulaanbaatar (Mongolia), the two leaders exchanged views on bilateral, regional and global matters.

The Lithuanian Prime Minister invited Indian participation in the ASEM Women Economic Empowerment meeting in May 2017 in Vilnius as also in the Life Sciences Baltics Conference in September 2016. The Vice President of India noted the steady economic progress made by Lithuanian and conveyed gratitude for Lithuanian support to India’s membership application in the Nuclear Suppliers Group.

The leaders noted that bilateral cooperation had intensified in the recent past. The two countries have this year signed agreements for cooperation in the fields of culture as well as agriculture, facilitating collaborative activities between specialised organizations in both countries. A growing number of Indian students, currently over 600, are pursuing higher education in Lithuanian universities, particularly in management, finance and technology courses.

The Prime Minister recalled the ‘Gandhian connection’ between the two countries. In October last year, a sculptural composition of Mahatma Gandhi and his Lithuanian friend Hermann Kallenbach, was installed in Rusne town in Lithuania, marking the legacy of peace and non-violence taught and practiced by Gandhiji. The Prime Minister had himself unveiled this sculpture.

Bilateral trade between the two countries has been growing consistently and amounted to over US$300 million in 2015-16. Lithuanian entrepreneurs led by the Indian Baltic Chamber of Commerce have been participating regularly in business events in India. Lithuanian companies have acquired considerable expertise and pre-eminence in manufacturing and supply of laser-based technologies and products.