President Murmu begins landmark 3-nation tour to Moldova, North Macedonia, Romania
The Ministry of External Affairs said on Friday that President Droupadi Murmu will pay state visits to Moldova, North Macedonia and Romania from July 19
The Ministry of External Affairs said on Friday that President Droupadi Murmu will pay state visits to Moldova, North Macedonia and Romania from July 19 to 25, with the trip aimed at strengthening ties across areas such as trade, technology, tourism and people-to-people exchanges. The MEA said the three-nation tour also complements India's broader engagement with Europe and its strategic partnership with the European Union. Read Full Story Briefing reporters, MEA Secretary (West) Sibi George said, "The three-nation visit is of considerable historic significance, as it marks the first-ever bilateral visits by an Indian president to the Republic of Moldova and the Republic of North Macedonia." Murmu's visit to Romania will be the first state visit by an Indian president to that country in more than three decades, with the previous such visit having taken place in 1994. George said, "The three-nation visit reflects India's growing engagement with central and eastern Europe, and reaffirms our commitment to strengthening our partnerships with the countries in the region. It also complements India's broader engagement with Europe and the strategic partnership with the European Union," adding that it would strengthen collaboration in the "three Ts – trade, technology and tourism".
Murmu will visit Moldova on July 20 at the invitation of President Maia Sandu, in what will be the first-ever visit by an Indian president to the country. During the visit, she will hold one-to-one and delegation-level talks with Sandu, and will also meet the Moldovan prime minister and the President of the Parliament of Moldova, Igor Grosu. She is also scheduled to interact with members of the Moldova-India Parliamentary Friendship Group, address a business forum and meet members of the Indian community. The Moldovan president will host a banquet dinner in her honour. Speaking about ties with Moldova, George said, "India and Moldova enjoy warm and friendly relations, based on mutual respect, democratic values and cooperation in multilateral fora, though economic engagement is yet to realise its full potential." He said Moldova strongly condemned the Pahalgam terror attack in April 2025 and expressed strong support to India in its fight against terrorism. George also said education has emerged as an "important pillar" of bilateral ties, with a large number of Indian students studying medicine in Moldova. He said the visit would provide an opportunity to review the full range of ties and discuss ways to expand cooperation and raise the relationship from political goodwill to a "broad-based partnership" in areas including trade and investment, digital technologies, innovation, renewable energy, healthcare, education, agriculture, culture and connectivity.
The BriefWire