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EAM S. Jaishankar met Princess Astrid of Belgium on Monday. In a post on X the EAM wrote, "Delighted to meet Princess Astrid of Belgium, leading an economic mission to India. Confident that her visit will foster greater collaborations for a stronger India - Belgium and India - EU partnership."
Princess Astrid, the second child of King Albert II and Queen Paola and sister to King Philippe, leads Belgium's economic missions as representative of the King. According to a statement from the Belgian Monarchy, these missions contribute to the development of economic and trade relations between Belgium and its regions and numerous foreign partners. She is the Honorary President of the Queen Elisabeth Medical Foundation (QEMF), and supports the King Baudouin Foundation's Scientific and Medical Funds. Princess Astrid maintains contacts with the scientific world to support fundamental medical research in various fields, visiting various sites and participating in award ceremonies. According to a statement from the External Affairs Ministry (MEA), Princess Astrid will meet Prime Minister Narendra Modi during her visit and visit various states, including Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra, and Delhi. According to the Belgian Ambassador to India, Didier Vanderhasselt, the Princess will be on a Belgian economic mission to India, travelling with a delegation of 335 members and 180 companies. Belgium's Foreign Minister, Maxime Prevot, is also be part of the economic mission with the princess. "It is the highest format that we have on the Belgian side, led by H.H. Princess Astrid as the representative of the king. Our new Minister of Foreign Affairs, who is also our Deputy Prime Minister, and other ministers will also be accompanying the delegation of 335 members and 180 companies," said Vanderhasselt. The Belgian envoy further mentioned that at least 14 seminars and conferences will focus on sectors such as renewable energy, defence, eco-construction, life sciences, and steel decarbonization. "We are going towards a more intense and strategic relationship between the EU and India and also between Belgium and India. We need reliable partners all over the world. India has a very impressive growth of 5-7% every year. So India is very high on our priority list, and it is certainly on the map when it comes to our economic actors," the Belgian envoy told ANI. (ANI)
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