Modi, Meloni vow to deepen India-Italy ties, call for early end to Ukraine war

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday said he held an “excellent conversation” with Italian counterpart Giorgia Meloni, reaffirming their joint commitment to advancing the India-Italy Strategic Partnership.

In a post on X, Modi noted that both leaders shared a “strong interest” in bringing about an early resolution to the ongoing conflict in Ukraine. He underlined that peace and stability in Europe remain a matter of common concern.

The Prime Minister also expressed gratitude to Meloni for Italy’s “proactive support” in pushing forward negotiations on a balanced and mutually beneficial India-EU trade agreement.

Modi welcomed Italy’s role in promoting connectivity through the India-Middle East-Europe Economic Corridor (IMEC) initiative, which was announced last year as a major transcontinental trade and transport project.

IMEC was launched during India’s G20 presidency and aims to integrate India, the Europe, the Middle-East through the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Israel and the European Union.

According to the officials, IMEC is an important initiative that can add to India's maritime security and faster movement of goods between Europe and Asia. IMEC will reduce the logistics costs by up to 30% and transportation time by 40%. Recently, on April 16, the IMEC High-Level Roundtable on Connectivity and Economic Growth was held in New Delhi.