Terrorism is biggest threat to global stability, says PM Plenkovic; India, Croatia to boost ties in defence, IT, shipbuilding

Zagreb [Croatia], June 18 (ANI): Terming terrorism as the "biggest threat to global stability", Croatian Prime Minister Andrej Plenkovic on Wednesday said his country has understood well Prime Minister Narendra Modi's message on fight against terrorism and the two countries were keen to strengthen cooperation in the defence, nuclear energy, shipbuilding, and information technology.
In a press statement with PM Modi after their bilateral talks, the Croatian leader expressed solidarity with India over the Pahalgam terror attack in which 26 people died.
He said the global situation in terms of security is very volatile and it is important to have the most influential actors worldwide to give their contribution to peace.
"We have also discussed and expressed sorrow for the terrorist attack that happened in India, after which India had to react, and we also said that the global situation in terms of security is very volatile. So it is important to have the most influential actors worldwide to give their contribution to peace...We have understood very well the Indian Prime Minister's message on fighting against terrorism because that is the biggest threat to global stability," he said.
"We have also agreed on future cooperation in all areas from the economy to defence...We want to strengthen cooperation in the defence industry, nuclear energy, shipbuilding, and information technology as India is a global leader in the IT sector," he added.
The Croatian leader said the meeting is an opportunity to show the importance and strength of relations between the two countries, friendly relations with a lot of mutual respect with significant historical ties.
"Today we signed full memoranda in the area of cooperation in agriculture, multiannual cooperation in culture, in science and finally a memorandum between the Indian Council for Culture Relations and the University of Zagreb related to the study of Indology," he said.
The two leaders also discussed India's efforts to conclude the Free Trade Agreement with the European Union, which Croatia supports.
"We believe negotiations about the free trade agreement will finalise as soon as possible because that will strengthen a corporation and that will facilitate easier trade between Croatia and India," he said.
"We believe that PM Modi's initiative on the economic corridor between India, the Middle East and Europe is an excellent opportunity...This is an opportunity to connect Croatia as a Mediterranean gateway to Central Europe and to connect it to India, India's economy and market," he added.
PM Modi arrived in Croatia earlier in the day in the last leg of his three-nation visit. (ANI)