Czech Prime Minister Petr Fiala and his Indian counterpart Narendra Modi held talks in India today on strengthening Czech-Indian cooperation, such as in the development of nuclear energy, Fiala told journalists after the meeting .
According to Fiala, Modi expressed interest in cooperating with the Czech Republic on the development of small modular reactors. The leaders also agreed on a strategic innovation partnership, which creates a framework for cooperation between schools, research institutes and companies from the Czech Republic and India, covering areas ranging from medicine to artificial intelligence and cybernetics, Fiala said.
The Czech Prime Minister also asked the Indian Prime Minister for support to acquire more Indian lions for Prague zoo.
In the wake of the war in Ukraine, the Czech Republic has to look for reliable democratic partners in the world, and India has a key role to play in this regard, Fiala said in his speech at the Vibrant Gujarat Global Summit economic forum today.
The Czech PM said innovation and new technologies, advanced industry and applied research were the keys to a successful future. Cooperation with India will include areas such as energy and infrastructure, Fiala said.
The Czech Republic is one of the partner countries for this year’s 10th edition of the economic forum, which the state of Gujarat hosts every two years, except during the COVID-19 pandemic. More than 45,000 delegates and over 48,000 companies registered for the event this year, according to its website.
Apart from Fiala and Modi, other guest speakers at the Vibrant Gujarat summit included President of East Timor and Nobel Peace Prize winner Jose Ramos-Horta, and the Presidents of the United Arab Emirates and Mozambique.
The forum is being held at the Mahatma Mandir complex in Gandhinagar, the administrative centre of the West Indian state of Gujarat. The city is named after Mahatma Gandhi, the founder of the independent Indian state and a native of Gujarat.
The value of bilateral trade between the Czech Republic and India has been increasing in recent years. Last year, goods worth CZK 25.2 billion were exported from the Czech Republic to India, while goods worth CZK 48.9 billion flowed in the opposite direction, according to the Ministry of Industry and Trade.
