Lennart Meri, President of the Republic, today had a meeting with the Indian President Kicheril Raman Narayanan at the Rashtrabati Bhavan, the residence of the Indian President.

On the welcoming ceremony in honour of President Meri and Mrs. Helle Meri, the Guard of Honour and the Cavalry Regiment were lined up, and the national anthems of Estonia and India were played. On the festive ceremony the Presidents introduced to each other their delegations.

After the ceremony, President Meri and Mrs. Helle Meri paid a visit to the Mahatma Gandhi Memorial, where the President of the Republic of Estonia laid a wreath. Into the guestbook of the Mahatma Gandhi memorial the President wrote that he is glad that the thoughts of the Mahatma have been translated into Estonian and have, in a way, influenced Estonians as well as other nations in the whole world.

President of the Republic gave a greeting address to the Estonian-Indian business seminar organized by the Indian Chamber of Commerce and Industry. He urged the Indian businessmen, of whom more than 200 were present on the seminar, to invest in Estonia. “Estonia is situated in the centre of a region whose market, when counting only the Scandinavian countries and north-western Russia, reaches up to 80 million consumers. And Estonia has become a trustworthy trading partner and the upholder of dynamic development in this region,” the President said.

In the presence of the President of Estonia, Mart Relve, the Chairman of the Estonian Chamber of Commerce and Industry, signed the co-operation agreement between the chambers of commerce and industry of the two countries.

President of the Republic today also met Atal Behari Vajpaye, the Prime Minister of India; on their meeting the relations between the two states were discussed, as well as the similar views of India, the world’s second biggest country, and Estonia, one of the smallest countries of Europe, on the necessity reform the UN. Foreign Minister Raul Mälk asked the Indian Prime Minister whether India is not going to appoint an honorary consul to Estonia. He mentioned that in relations with India, Estonia has greatly benefited form the activities of Kasturi Lal Vig, the Honorary Consul General of Estonia in India. The Prime Minister of India promised to consider the issue.

On the meeting with Krishnant Kant, Vice-President of India, issues of parliamentary democracy were discussed. The Vice-President was interested in the Estonian party system, and President Meri spoke of the pre-election situation in the Estonian domestic policy. Vice-President Krishnant Kant was also interested in the progress of the integration process of the Russian-speaking population.

This evening, Indian President Kicheril Raman Narayanan and Mrs. Narayanan hosted a dinner in honour of the President of the Republic and Mrs. Helle Meri.

Tomorrow, the state visit of President Lennart Meri and Mrs. Helle Meri will continue in New Delhi, whence they will proceed to Agra.


Press Service of the Office of the President
Kadriorg, February 5, 1999

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