Statement to the Press by the President of India

I am, indeed, very happy to be in Vienna. My delegation and I are deeply touched by the warmth of the reception, and for the generous hospitality accorded to us by the Government and the people of Austria. I bring greetings and good wishes from the people of India to the friendly people of Austria.

2. The firm foundations of our traditionally close and friendly relations were laid by the first generation of political leaders of our countries - Pandit Jawahar Lal Nehru our first Prime Minister, Chancellor Bruno Kreisky and Prime Minister Indira Gandhi. They nurtured the strong friendship between the two countries, and established the tradition of collaboration on development issues, both at the bilateral and multilateral levels.

3. Today, our bilateral relations are wide-ranging, multi-dimensional and mutually beneficial. Our shared and abiding commitment to the ideals of democracy and pluralism has only reinforced our close and friendly ties. My visit to Austria reaffirms our common commitment to take our relations onward to new heights.

4. I have had very fruitful discussions with President Fischer today. We recalled his milestone State visit to India in 2005, the first visit by any Austrian President to India. Our discussions today, built on the commitments in the Joint Statement issued on the occasion of President Fischer's visit. We covered the entire gamut of our bilateral relations, as well as regional and multilateral issues of concern to our countries.

5. Over the past six decades, we have developed strong ties and institutional framework for dialogue and cooperation in the political, economic, commercial, science and technology fields. Further strengthening the framework of bilateral relations, we have signed two Memoranda of Understanding today - one on Technology Specific Cooperation in the field of Railways and the second on Cooperation in Science and Technology.

6. A business delegation from India has accompanied me to explore business opportunities that exist between our two countries, and to give greater content to this important sphere of our interaction. I look forward to my participation in the Business Meet tomorrow, to listen to the views from the captains of industry from both sides, and encourage them to participate in our bilateral economic exchanges.

7. Among the areas we touched upon in our discussions was the issue of international terrorism which has emerged as a fundamental threat to global peace and security. Open and democratic societies like ours are particularly vulnerable to this menace. The terrorist attacks in Mumbai and recently in Delhi and elsewhere in the world, remind us that we must remain resolute and determined in our joint efforts to eliminate terrorism.

8. We see Austria as a partner in all international forums. India strongly believes that there is an urgent need to reform the United Nations. The Security Council needs to be restructured to reflect the contemporary realities, if it wishes to react effectively to the many emerging collective security challenges.

9. During our discussions I have also said that India is actively thinking of becoming a member of the International Anti-Corruption Academy in Vienna.

10. The understandings that we have arrived at, in today's discussions, have further consolidated our mutually beneficial partnership. I have invited President Heinz Fischer to visit to India on mutually convenient dates, to be decided through diplomatic channels.

Thank You!