PM in Portugal: Costa arranges Gujarati meal for Modi

Modi's visit is being seen as his effort to reach out to the European countries where China has already made significant inroads.

By Vikas

Updated: Saturday, June 24, 2017, 19:30 [IST]

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday arrived in Lisbon on the first leg of his three-nation tour to Portugal, U.S. and the Netherlands. This is the first ever bilateral visit of an Indian Prime Minister to Portugal.

Portugal Foreign Minister Augusto Santos Silva received Prime Minister Modi at the airport.

Modi later interacted with Portuguese Prime Minister Antonio Costa at Necessidades Palace in Lisbon. The Prime Minister will attend a dinner at Necessidades Palace.

Costa arranged a Gujarati meal for Modi for Modi to show his generous hospitality towards the Indian Prime Minister.

Modi had earlier said in a Facebook post that his visit is aimed at enhancing the bilateral engagement, especially in the areas of economic cooperation, science and technology, space collaboration and people to people ties.

"We will deliberate on means to intensify our cooperation in counter-terrorism and on other international issues of mutual interest. I also see significant potential for deepening bilateral trade and investment ties," he wrote in his post.

Portuguese Prime Minister Antonio Costa had in January visited India for a week, during which he also visited his ancestral place in Goa.

Modi's visit is being seen as his effort to reach out to the European countries where China has already made significant inroads.

According to reports, China has high levels of per capita investments in energy, telecommunication and infrastructure sectors in Portugal.