Modi arrives in Seychelles on 3-nation tour of the region

More than three decades after the last Indian premier’s visit to Seychelles, Prime Minister Narendra Modi landed in the Indian Ocean archipelago on Tuesday, commencing a five-day visit to the region which, he said, is “vital for security and progress” of India.

Modi’s arrival in Victoria, the capital of Seychelles, ended a 34-year-long hiatus in visits of Indian Prime Ministers to the island nation. His visit to Sri Lanka at the last leg of the tour to the region will also be the first by a Prime Minister of India in 28 years.

“My visit to the three Indian Ocean Island countries reflects our foreign policy priorities in India’s immediate and extended neighbourhood. India attaches paramount importance to strengthening relations with this region, which is vital for India’s security and progress,” Modi said shortly before embarking on a three-nation tour, which will also take him to Mauritius.

The visit is being seen as New Delhi’s efforts to deepen its engagements in Indian Ocean region to countervail growing influence of China in maritime neighbourhood of India.

The prime minister will travel from Victoria to Mauritius’ capital Port Louis on Wednesday.

“I am honoured to have been invited to be the chief guest for the Independence Day celebrations in Mauritius on March 12, a date special to all Indians because Mahatma Gandhi began his Dandi March on the same date in 1930,” Modi said on Tuesday.