Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his Finnish counterpart Sanna Marin on Tuesday expressed concern over the recent developments in Myanmar in which protestors have been killed in clashes with security forces following a coup and said rule of law must be upheld.
Addressing a press briefing after the virtual summit meeting between the two leaders, Neeta Bhushan, Joint Secretary (Central Europe) said they announced a high-level dialogue on education between the education ministry of both countries.
"Both the prime ministers expressed concern over the recent developments in Myanmar and mentioned that rule of law must be upheld. As we share land and maritime border with Myanmar, we have the highest stakes in peace and stability in the country," she said.
Large numbers of protesters have taken to the streets of Myanmar since the military seized power in February 1 coup. The country has witnessed violence in clashes between the protestors and soldiers.
The two leaders underlined that the longstanding and close relations between India and Finland were based on shared values of democracy, rule of law, equality and respect for human rights.
Bhushan said both sides reaffirmed their strong commitment to work for multilateralism and a rules-based international order and to work towards sustainable development goals and combating climate change.
The two prime ministers also exchanged views on COVID-19 pandemic including vaccine solidarity and emphasised the unprecedented global efforts in speeding up the development and scaling up of manufacture of vaccines.
Bhushan said Startup Indian and Business Finland have started India-Finland tech hub, a virtual platform for startups and entrepreneurs to network with their mentors, incubators and investors.
"The ongoing collaboration in the joint development of quantum computers with the use of artificial intelligence which is going on between the Indian Institute of Science Education and Research, and Aalto University in Finland is an excellent example of close association in niche areas," she said.
"The Prime Minister's announced a high-level dialogue on education between the education ministry of both countries. In this direction, the two leaders welcomed the proposal to renew the MoU between the consortium of 10 Finnish universities and 23 IITs for the next five years," she added.
( With inputs from ANI )
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