New Zealand and India announced on Saturday a “strategic partnership” that includes defense and security, during a historic visit by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
New Zealand Prime Minister Christopher Luxon has praised India’s economic transformation under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, crediting it with lifting 250 million people out of poverty and calling the country’s progress an “amazing transformation.”
Addressing the India-New Zealand Business and Sports event in Auckland, Luxon recalled visiting India in his mid-20s in the 1990s while working for Unilever, which then owned Hindustan Lever, one of India’s largest companies. He said he remembers seeing workers being paid their daily wages in coins, highlighting how much the country has changed since then.
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“For many of you, you know I’ve been a big fan of India for a long time. I first went to India when I was in my mid-20s. That’s because I worked for a country called Unilever, which owned Hindustan Lever, which was a top 10 company in India. I remember going to India in the mid-to-late 1990s and people were getting daily wages with coins in their hands. And it’s interesting to me that under Prime Minister Modi, he looked up and said, ‘250 million people have come out.’ out of poverty, and there are now 440 million people in the middle class, poised to reach 750 million by the end of the decade.”
Prime Minister Modi arrived in Auckland on Friday evening, concluding his three-nation tour that focused largely on expanding cooperation in the Indo-Pacific region. His visit comes after India and New Zealand recently signed a free trade agreement.
In his speech to the audience, Modi said that the relationship between the two countries is entering a new phase.
“I have brought with me the aspirations of 140 crore people. This interaction is happening at a critical time, when the India-New Zealand relationship is at a turning point. It is not just a diplomatic milestone, it is a solution for a better tomorrow,” he said.
Modi expressed his confidence that closer relations between the two countries would create new opportunities for companies, innovation and youth while enhancing economic cooperation.
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Luxon also recalled his first meeting with Modi in Laos, saying the Indian Prime Minister spoke about the scale of infrastructure development underway in the country. He pointed to the construction of 147 new airports, the need for about 2,000 additional aircraft to meet the growing demand for domestic air travel, and the rapid expansion of universities and technical colleges.
“As someone who has visited India many times and seen the transition from low income to middle income to high income, it was very inspiring and exciting to see the transformation that has taken place.”
The two leaders also stressed the importance of dialogue, diplomacy, and adherence to international law in achieving peaceful and lasting solutions to global conflicts.
(Inputs from ANI and PTI)
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