SPEECH
BY SHRI K.R. NARAYANAN, PRESIDENT OF INDIA, WHILE ACCEPTING
CREDENTIALS FROM MR. THORSTEINN PALSSON, AMBASSADOR-DESIGNATE
OF ICELAND TO INDIA
NEW DELHI, FEBRUARY 11,
2000
Excellency,
I have great pleasure
in accepting the Letter of Credence from His Excellency, Mr. Olafur Ragnar
Grimsson, President of Iceland accrediting you as the Ambassador Extraordinary
and Plenipotentiary of the Republic of Iceland to India. May I request you
to transmit to His Excellency my sincere thanks for his good wishes and
greetings which I warmly reciprocate.
Relations between India
and the Republic of Iceland are based on shared values and principles. Both
our countries are firmly committed to democracy, human rights, responsible
governance, freedom of speech and the rule of law as well as to the promotion
of international peace. These commonalities allow for a relationship which
is based on mutual trust, goodwill and co-operation. I am confident that
India and the Republic of Iceland will continue to work together to further
expand and enrich the bonds of friendship which bind our two countries.
We look forward to the
forthcoming visit of His Excellency, the President of Iceland to India.
He knows our country well and we look upon him as a valued friend of India.
We are sure that his visit will contribute to better understanding between
both countries. We would be happy to further encourage mutually beneficial
exchanges between our two countries.
Excellency, the existing
levels of trade and commercial exchanges between our two countries are much
below the potential which exists. We would look forward to working with
Iceland to further augment economic linkages between our two countries.
The possibilities of meaningful cooperation, in areas such as information
technology and fisheries, can be further explored. The Indian economy has
registered annual growth rates between 5 and 7%, during the last decade.
The Government has also taken a number of steps to promote foreign direct
investment, particularly in infrastructure development. These developments
open up useful opportunities for India's business partners.
We are today living in
a world in which effective action for dealing with many of the challenges
which confront us, has to be based on global partnership. India and Iceland
both, as you mention, share the values of peace, democracy and justice for
promoting peace, security and well being in the international community.
It is therefore, natural that we should consult each other on issues of
global importance and to the extent possible, also coordinate our actions.
We would, Excellency, look forward to greater exchanges on such issues between
our two countries.
Excellency, I would like
to assure you that in your personal endeavours to reinforce ties between
India and the Republic of Iceland, you will receive the fullest co-operation
of my Government. I am confident that during your tenure, bilateral and
mutually beneficial co-operation between our two countries will increase
further.
Thank you
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