Africa-Press – Angola. Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced this Saturday in New Delhi a credit line of 200 million dollars to support the modernization of the Angolan Armed Forces (FAA).
Speaking at the end of official talks between the governments of the two countries, as part of President João Lourenço’s visit to India, he said that his country is available to provide military equipment and collaborate in training the FAA.
He considered the Angolan President’s visit to be historic, 38 years after the last visit of an Angolan statesman to India, as it represents an act that will give a different direction to bilateral cooperation.
“The two countries are celebrating the 40th anniversary of the establishment of their political relations, but the relations are older and deeper,” said Prime Minister Modi, referring to the support given to Angola during the struggle for independence, a process in which his country participated “with all its faith and friendship”.
He stated that India is one of the largest buyers of oil and gas from Angola, a factor that has shaped cooperation since then, but today the parties have decided to expand relations to other areas.
During his speech, the Indian Head of Government said that India is happy to promote cooperation and development through digital infrastructure, space technology and wants to share its capabilities with Angola.
According to Narendra Modi, the two countries have decided to strengthen relations in the areas of healthcare, diamond processing, fertilizers and critical minerals.
To strengthen the partnership, he also said that the parties decided to start an exchange program of youth visits to exchange knowledge in various areas.
On the occasion, Narendra Modi invited Angola to join the International Solar Alliance.
Angolan solidarity
Narendra Modi thanked the Angolan President for his solidarity with the recent act of violence that occurred in the Indian region of Kashmir and left 26 dead.
“I express my deep gratitude to the Angolan people and President João Lourenço for the condolences extended to the people killed by terrorists,” Modi said, before saying that India is committed to taking serious action against terrorists and those who support them.
Relations between Angola and India are underpinned by an energy partnership and date back to Angola’s pre-Independence era.
In an act of solidarity, India supported Angola’s freedom struggle against Portuguese colonial rule until the country’s Independence in 1975.
Since then, the Indian government has maintained strong ties with the Angolan political leadership, particularly since the establishment of diplomatic relations between the two countries in 1985 and the arrival of the first Indian ambassador to Luanda in November 1986.
Indo-Angolan cooperation is underpinned by several agreements that have created an environment conducive to mutual trade and investment.
The legal instruments signed include the Consultation Protocol between the two nations and the Joint Declaration on Bilateral Cooperation, signed in May 2006, as well as the Memorandum of Understanding on the Promotion of Cooperation in the Oil and Natural Gas Sector, initialled in November 2010.
In January 2017, the two partners agreed on the establishment of a Bilateral Commission, before signing, in 2018, the Memorandum of Understanding on Cooperation in the Area of Electronics and Information and Communication Technologies (ICT).
To facilitate mobility in the Indo-Angolan space, the Agreement on Visa Exemption for Holders of Diplomatic, Official and Service Passports and the Memorandum of Understanding on Cooperation in the Area of Health were established in September 2020.
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