May 04: The 12th India-Netherlands Foreign Office Consultations (FOC) were held on 2nd May 2024 in The Hague, the Netherlands. The Indian delegation was led by Shri Pavan Kapoor, Secretary (West), Ministry of External Affairs, Government of India. The Dutch delegation was led by Mr. Paul Hujits, Secretary General, Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Netherlands. The last FOC took place in New Delhi in December 2022.
The FOC provided an opportunity to review progress in bilateral relations and discuss future agenda of cooperation. Both sides welcomed the excellent progress in all areas and deliberated on the way forward in priority sectors of Water, Agriculture & Health (WAH agenda), Science & Technology, and High-tech & Innovation. They underscored their interest to raise the level of ambition and agreed to further strengthen bilateral relations, by focusing on new emerging technologies like semiconductors and green hydrogen. The two sides appreciated the robust and fast-growing economic ties and noted the importance of holding the inaugural meeting of the Fast Track Mechanism for Indian companies in the Netherlands as an important step towards further enhancing B2B relations. They also appreciated the presence of a large Indian community in the Netherlands, which forms an important link and is contributing positively to the local economy and expanding cultural ties… The two sides also exchanged views on regional and global issues of mutual interest.
During his visit to the Netherlands, Secretary (West) also visited the Technical University of Delft, a premier institution in STEM research & education. He had an engaging interaction with faculty, researchers & students from India, highlighting the significant collaboration between India and the Netherlands in the area of innovation & technology partnerships to address societal challenges. Secretary Kapoor also visited the Peace Palace and held meetings with the Registrar of the International Court of Justice, Mr. Phillippe Gautier, and Judge Dalveer Bhandari.
India and the Netherlands share a strong bilateral relationship based on shared democratic values and multi-faceted cooperation in diverse areas such as water, agriculture, health, science & technology, education, cyber, shipping, and others. The two countries have a Strategic Partnership on Water covering extensive cooperation and knowledge sharing in flood management, clean water technologies, etc. There is a regular exchange of bilateral visits at political and official levels. Last year, the Netherlands was invited as a guest country during India’s G20 Presidency and Prime Minister Mark Rutte attended the G20 Summit in New Delhi in September 2023.
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