PM Modi Holds Talks With Fijian Counterpart Rabuka

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday held wide-ranging talks with his Fijian counterpart Sitiveni Ligamamada Rabuka, focusing on shoring up bilateral ties in areas such as trade and investment.

Rabuka arrived in Delhi on Sunday on a three-day trip. It is his first visit to India in his capacity as the prime minister of the South Pacific nation.

The Fijian leader is accompanied by a high-level delegation that included health minister Ratu Atonio Lalabalavu and several senior officials.

Fiji is an important nation for India in the sphere of maritime security. The two nations have a strong cultural and people-to-people ties. India's links with Fiji began in 1879 when Indian labourers were taken to Fiji under the indenture system by the British.

Rabuka's visit to India comes a year after President Droupadi Murmu travelled to Fiji.

Prime minister Rabuka's visit underscores the longstanding and enduring ties between India and Fiji, an Indian readout said on Thursday.

'It reaffirms the continued commitment of both countries to further strengthen the bilateral relationship across all sectors and deepen our close people-to-people ties,' it said.