Modi in Greece highlights: PM Modi departs from Greece for India's Bengaluru to meet Chandrayaan-3 team at ISRO

"The Moon is a hot topic these days, so I will give one example by linking it to the Moon. In the last 9 years, the roads built in villages in India are of a total distance that can cover the distance between the Earth and the Moon..." said the Indian PM. 

It is the first time in 40 years that an Indian prime minister is visiting Greece, and the top agenda of PM Narendra Modi's visit is to deepen cooperation on geopolitical and regional issues between Athens and New Delhi.

Earlier, PM Modi was also conferred with the Grand Cross of the Order of Honour by the Greek president. 

Late Friday (August 25), PM Modi also addressed a community programme in Athens where he said the award conferred upon him was a mark of honour for the 1.4 billion people at home.

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"India today is celebrating its heritage, and soon the biggest museum in the world - 'Yuge Yugeen Bharat National Museum' - will come up in Delhi," said PM Modi in Athens during his speech to the Indian community. 

This comes after officials last month said that the upcoming Yuge Yugeen Bharat National Museum would be the largest museum globally and comprise eight thematic segments narrating India's history spanning over 5,000 years. 

Speaking about how far India's development has come in recent years, PM Modi said, "Today, India is working on a scale which seemed unimaginable 10 years back..."

He added, "In five years, 13.5 crore Indians came above the poverty line.  With the increase in size of Indian economy, there has been an increase in earnings of every family too. Indians are earning more and investing more." 

Modi also said how world's highest-altitude rail bridge & motorable road, biggest cricket stadium, tallest statue are now in India. 

"Going by the slogan of 'Jai Jawan, Jai Kisan, Jai Vigyan, Jai Anusudhan', India is now strengthening all of its sectors," said the Indian PM in Athens. 

Speaking about the upcoming G20 summit which will be hosted by India, PM Modi said, "A few days from now, the G20 Summit is going to be held in India. As G20 president, the theme decided by India reflects global harmony. The theme is 'Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam' - One Earth, One Family, One Future..."

He also spoke about how India's role in the world is also rapidly changing. "Today the world is heading towards a new world order. With its increasing capability, India's role before the world is also changing rapidly." 

"India's role changing fast in post-Covid world order, our G20 presidency theme talks of entire world having shared future," said the Indian PM. 

"You saw how during Corona Indian medicines continued the supply chain and didn't let it stop. Made In India Corona vaccine, saved crores of lives across the world," said the Indian PM in Athens. 

He also said that today India is the fifth largest economy of the world, and according to experts, the country will soon be among the top three economies of the globe. 

"Global bodies like World Bank, IMF praising Indian economy, big companies vying with each other to invest in India," said the Indian PM. 

During his speech, PM Modi also expressed his sympathies to the people of Greece amid "major crisis" referring to the wildfires that have spread across the country. 

"Today, I express my sympathies to the people of Greece. When the forest fires started here, it became a major crisis. Several people in Greece died. In this hour of crisis, India stands with the people of Greece," said Modi. 

European Union-backed Copernicus Climate Change Service has said that wildfires in Greece are turning out to be largest recorded on European soil in years. The fires have burned for a seventh day as of Friday (August 25) and destroyed tens of thousands of hectares of land in the northeast alone. 

Speaking about the highest civilian honour that was bestowed upon the Indian PM earlier on Friday he said, "You saw that the Govt of Greece honoured me with the highest civilian award of Greece. All of you deserve this honour, the 140 crore Indians deserve this honour. I dedicate this honour to the children of Maa Bharat."

"I have come here among my family members. The country has achieved a new feat in this holy month of Sawan. India has become the first country to reach the dark zone of the Moon," said PM Modi, in his address to the Indian community members in Athens. 

He added, "By hoisting the Tiranga (on the moon), we have made the world aware of India's capabilities. Congratulatory messages are pouring in from across the world...The social media is full of congratulatory messages." 

"When the achievement is this big, its celebration also continues. Your faces say that wherever you might be in the world, India beats in your heart...I congratulate you once again on the grand success of Chandrayaan-3...," said Modi. 

Speaking about PM Modi's visit to Greece, Foreign Secretary Vinay Kwatra said, "Prime Minister was received with exceptional warmth and the discussions with his counterpart, the Greek Prime Minister were extensive and resulted in important and productive outcomes." 

During his visit to Greece, PM Modi attended a business lunch hosted by the Greek PM and said, "India has not just demographic power but our youth are also aspirational...This is a rare combination that strengthens India's economy. To transform the country, my mantra has been 'Reform, Perform, Transform'. We are going ahead with this spirit."

He added, "Today, India's doors are wide open for foreign investment. Defence sectors are also being opened. There is immense potential for co-development and co-production. With our digitisation efforts, ease of doing business is also increasing continuously."

India and Greece have decided to elevate their partnership to a strategic level, Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced on Friday (Aug 25) during a joint press conference with Greek counterpart Kyriakos Mitsotakis.

Indian PM Modi also said on Thursday that to make skilled migration between India and Greece easier, the governments have decided to strike a Migration and Mobility Partnership agreement soon.

"In the area of defence & security, we have agreed to empower military relations as well as the defence industry. Today, we held discussions over mutual cooperation in the area of terrorism and cyber security. We have decided that there should also be an NSA-level dialogue platform. PM and I agree that our bilateral trade is increasing rapidly and there is immense potential for an increase in the time ahead too. So, we have decided to double our bilateral trade by 2030," PM Modi said.

PM Modi met his Greek counterpart Kyriakos Mitsotakis and President Katerina Sakellaropoulou in Athens. Modi is the first Indian PM in the last 40 years to visit Greece. He arrived in the Balkans country at the invitation of Mitsotakis.

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PM Narendra Modi conferred with the Grand Cross of the Order of Honour by Greek President Katerina N. Sakellaropoulou in Athens. 

PM Modi and his Greek counterpart will discuss ways to further deepen the ties between the two nations. He will also interact with business leaders from both countries.

He will also have an interaction with the Indian community in Greece. A business lunch hosted by the Greek PM is also scheduled during the visit.

The Indian diaspora in Greece has expressed happiness and much excitement on PM Modi’s visit. Ahead of PM Modi's visit, Greek students from a Bollywood dance academy in Athens are preparing to perform at the Indian diaspora event. 

PM Modi arrived in Greece for a day-long visit on the invitation of his Greek counterpart Kyriakos Mitsotakis. He departed from Johannesburg, South Africa, on Thursday night where he was attending the 15th BRICS summit. 

During his visit to Greece, PM Modi will receive a ceremonial reception on his arrival and will also hold meetings with the Greek President and Prime Minister. 

Indian PM Modi laid a wreath at the unknown soldier monument in front of the Greek Parliament. 

PM Modi on Friday (August 25) arrived in Athens, Greece. He will hold meetings with the Greek leadership, business community as well as interact with the Indian diaspora.