Parliamentary Cooperation Boosted: Margherita in Nauru

New Delhi, October 22: Pabitra Margherita, Minister of State for External Affairs, used her visit to Nauru to hold discussions with the country's Parliament Speaker, Marcus Stephen, on Thursday. Both sides explored ways to widen cooperation in parliamentary engagement and capacity building.

The meeting was held at Nauru's historic Parliament building in Yaren. The minister took note of pictures of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla hanging in the Speaker's office.

In a message posted on X, Margherita described the meeting as a pleasure and said the displayed photographs reflected the friendship between two vibrant democracies. She added that the discussions covered shared democratic values and possible avenues for stronger parliamentary cooperation and capacity building.

Beyond the official talks, Margherita met members of the Indian community in Nauru and applauded their contribution to deepening India's relations with the island nation. She noted in another post on X that these interactions had strengthened people-to-people ties.

Her schedule earlier in the day also included a meeting with former participants of the ITEC and ICCR programmes. Margherita said hearing about their time in India gave her a clear view of how Indian capacity building initiatives are contributing to skill development and to the India-Nauru partnership.

Having completed her engagements in Samoa, the minister reached Nauru. The Cook Islands form the third stage of her tour.

The Ministry of External Affairs has said that India and Nauru enjoy friendly and cordial ties. India has emerged as a key development partner for Nauru, and its assistance in the Pacific island nation is widely recognised. The ministry added that Nauru gives special importance to India, which first raised the matter of Nauru's independence at the United Nations in the early 1960s.