Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday managed to get a positive word on Switzerland's support India's bid to be a part of the Nuclear Suppliers Group, reported NDTV. "We have promised India support in its efforts to become a member of NSG," Swiss President Johann Schneider-Ammann said after meeting Modi.
Switzerland is the third stop for Modi, who is on a five-nation tour, including Afghanistan, Qatar, Switzerland, US and Mexico.
Switzerland is an important member of the NSG – an international group comprising 48 countries that work together to monitor and control the export of materials or technology that can be used to create nuclear weapons. India has already applied for membership to the group. Modi is also likely to discuss renewable energy and vocational education, fields that Switzerland dominates. The alpine country is India’s fifth largest trade partner and 11th largest investor.
On the matter of black money, India has communicated with the Swiss government on the Double Taxation Avoidance Agreement mandate, Foreign Secretary S Jaishankar said, adding that India hoped “to engage as early as possible in the automatic exchange of information with Switzerland”.
Modi left for Switzerland following a meeting with Emir of Qatar Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani on Sunday. In Qatar, he encouraged business leaders to invest in India. The prime minister began his five-nation tour in Afghanistan, where he inaugurated the Salma Dam, which was dubbed the Afghan-India friendship dam.
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