Mauritius PM meets Vice President Ansari, Union Minister Jaitley

New Delhi [India], May 27 (ANI): Mauritius Prime Minister Pravind Kumar Jugnauth on Saturday met Vice President Hamid Ansari and Union Minister Arun Jaitley. Earlier in the day, India and Mauritius exchanged five Memorandum of Understandings (MoU). Both the countries agreed to cooperate in stepping up vigil against conventional and non-conventional threats in the Indian Ocean. Prime Minister Narendra Modi said in a press conference, that as frontline states of the Indian Ocean, the two sides ensure collective maritime security around the coasts and in Exclusive Economic Zones (EEZs). He added that the two nations need to keep up vigil against piracy that impacts trade and tourism, trafficking of drugs and humans, illegal fishing and other forms of illegal exploitation of marine resources. The conclusion of the bilateral Maritime Security Agreement will strengthen our mutual cooperation and capacities, said Prime Minister Modi. India is supporting the National Coast Guard of Mauritius in augmenting its capacity through Project Trident and will renew the life of the Coast Guard Ship Guardian that was provided to Mauritius, under a grant assistance programme. India also agreed to provide a Line of Credit of USD 500 million to Mauritius for various projects. The Indian Prime Minister also declared a special carve-out on OCI cards for Mauritius. He said that India and Mauritius have developed strong bilateral cooperation in the field of defence and security. (ANI)