Onlykashmir.in News Desk
Prime Minister Narendra Modi has thanked a string of world leaders for their greetings on India’s 80th Independence Day, using social media replies to underscore deepening ties with France, the Maldives, Nepal, Bhutan and Slovakia on the occasion.
Responding to French President Emmanuel Macron’s message, Modi reaffirmed the strategic partnership between the two nations, which has grown steadily across defence, space and trade cooperation in recent years. In his reply to Maldivian President Dr Mohamed Muizzu, the Prime Minister acknowledged the warmth in bilateral relations, coming at a time when New Delhi and Male have worked to stabilise ties following earlier friction, with cooperation now expanding across infrastructure, security and people to people exchange.
Replying to Nepal’s Prime Minister Balendra Shah, who took office earlier this year following a wave of youth led political change in Kathmandu, Modi said the two countries remained committed to strengthening their multifaceted and centuries old civilisational ties for the mutual prosperity and wellbeing of both peoples, signalling continuity in the India Nepal relationship despite the change in Nepal’s leadership.
In a message thanking his Bhutanese counterpart Tshering Tobgay, the Prime Minister said India deeply cherished its special and enduring partnership with Bhutan, describing the relationship as one that continues to go from strength to strength, a reference to decades of close cooperation on hydropower, infrastructure and regional security between the two Himalayan neighbours.
Modi also responded to Slovak President Peter Pellegrini, telling him he looked forward to further strengthening the Comprehensive Partnership between India and Slovakia, a relationship that has gained renewed attention amid Slovakia’s expanding engagement with major Asian economies.
The exchange of greetings underscores the widening arc of India’s diplomatic outreach as it marks eight decades of independence, with leaders across South Asia, Europe and the Indian Ocean region using the occasion to publicly reaffirm bilateral ties. Foreign policy observers note that such gestures, though largely symbolic, matter in shaping the tone of India’s relationships with both longstanding partners such as France and newer or recalibrated ones such as Nepal under its new leadership and the Maldives, where ties had earlier come under strain. Officials in New Delhi are expected to build on these exchanges through high level visits and agreements in the coming months, as India continues to position itself as a central player in South Asian and global diplomacy while celebrating the milestone anniversary of its independence.
