Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday praised a Varanasi-themed exhibition at the Presidential Palace in Bratislava, saying that art and culture have a unique ability to strengthen ties between people and nations.
The exhibition, viewed by Prime Minister Modi and Slovak President Peter Pellegrini during the Prime Minister’s visit to Slovakia, featured works inspired by Varanasi, including creations by Slovak artists who recently visited the Indian city.
In a post on X, PM Modi said, “A Banaras connect in Bratislava! At the Presidential Palace in Bratislava yesterday, President Pellegrini and I viewed a fascinating exhibition centred on Varanasi, including works by Slovak artists who had recently visited the city. Art and culture truly have a unique ability to bring people closer. My compliments to all those whose works featured in this exhibition.”
The Prime Minister also appreciated President Pellegrini’s perspectives and discussions during the visit.
“Was wonderful meeting you, President Pellegrini. Happy to have continued the important conversations we had when we last met. Your insights are indeed great to hear,” Modi said in another post.
Earlier, PM Modi held talks with President Pellegrini on a range of issues, including manufacturing, transport, innovation, investment, energy and biofuels.
“Today’s talks with President Pellegrini covered diverse subjects such as closer ties in manufacturing, transport, innovation and investment linkages, energy, biofuels and more. There is also immense scope to cooperate in the field of digital technology. We also talked about deepening people-to-people linkages,” he said.
Separately, Prime Minister Modi and Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico reaffirmed their commitment to multilateralism, reforms of global institutions and enhanced cooperation with regional groupings, according to the India-Slovakia Joint Statement issued on Monday.
The two leaders underscored the need for comprehensive reforms of multilateral institutions, particularly the United Nations and the United Nations Security Council (UNSC), to make them more representative, inclusive and reflective of contemporary geopolitical realities. They also reiterated the need to expand the UNSC in both permanent and non-permanent categories.
The joint statement further said that India and Slovakia agreed to strengthen cooperation in defence, cybersecurity, critical infrastructure protection and connectivity, identifying these sectors as key pillars of the expanding bilateral partnership.
(With inputs from ANI)
