Jaishankar appreciates India-Tanzania Parliamentary Friendship Group

New Delhi [India], July 7 (ANI): External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar, on Friday, met with the members of the India-Tanzania Parliamentary Friendship Group and appreciated their warm sentiments for stronger parliamentary, political, economic and people-to-people ties.

Taking to Twitter, Jaishankar said, “Began the morning by meeting with members of the India-Tanzania Parliamentary Friendship Group. Appreciate their warm sentiments for stronger parliamentary, political, economic and people to people ties with India. Confident that the strong and historic ties between our two parliamentary democracies will keep growing.”
After meeting them, Jaishankar paid homage to Indian soldiers at the Commonwealth War Memorial in Dar-es Salaam.

“Their sacrifices in various theaters of war are an important aspect of our history. They are a reminder of India’s global impact,” Jaishankar said in a tweet.

Jaishankar, who is in Tanzania for a four-day visit, interacted with the members of the Indian community, on Thursday and said that he was in the country on an “IT mission, as in India-Tanzania mission.”

Jaishankar had a “lively interaction” with members of the Indian community in Dar es Salaam.

Sharing the purpose of his visit, the EAM said, “That IT (India-Tanzania) mission addresses some of the most important priorities of this country today.”

Apart from the ‘Mission IT’, during his interaction with the Indian community, EAM Jaishankar also highlighted the strong India-Africa connection, especially the deep links that New Delhi shares with East Africa.

“We have a strong relationship with Africa. It is something which partly comes out of our shared struggle for freedom during the colonial period but within that we have a particularly close connection with East Africa. And again, within that I think some parts of India are particularly closely linked,” he said.

He also noted that at the heart of India-Tanzania ties is the solidarity of spirit and mutuality of interests.

“All of you, as members of the Indian community living in Tanzania, working in Tanzania, visiting Tanzania, I think you can hold your head high that our friendship, our relationship, our partnership today will make a difference to the everyday life of a Tanzanian,” Jaishankar said.

Weighing in on India’s relationship with Africa, East Africa and Tanzania in particular, Jaishankar said, “The heart of this relationship is actually a certain solidarity of spirit, of outlook that we have had for many, many years. But over the years it is expressed in different forums. We have Global South. Today we are developing countries who have tried to work together for a fairer global order.”

The EAM added that the Indian community is an expression, contributor and force of this relationship between the two countries. (ANI)