President Droupadi Murmu met President of the Senate of Romania Mircea Abrudean and President of the Chamber of Deputies of Romania Sorin Grindeanu / X@rashtrapatibhvn

With a special focus on three Ts and attempting to realize its goal of emerging as a global AI hub, India is attempting to strengthen its partnership with three of the eastern European countries for whom it has decided to double the Indian Technical and Economic Cooperation  (ITEC) training slots and also offered professional courses for foreign diplomats at the Sushma Swaraj Institute of Foreign Service (SSIFS) in New Delhi. 

The above decisions were announced by President of India Droupadi Murmu who is currently on a three-nation tour of the eastern European countries of Romania, North Macedonia and Moldova.

While the President has wrapped up her visit to Moldova and North Macedonia, she is currently in the last leg of her tour and is visiting Romania which is the only member of the European Union (EU) among the three countries. North Macedonia and Moldova are candidate countries of the EU.

Commenting on the President's visit, secretary (west) Sibi George said that the three Ts - trade, tourism and technology -are the key focus areas of the tour and the President's engagements during her tour reflect the same. 

Accompanied by a large Indian trade delegation which comprises of business leaders from the spheres of  trade, digital technologies, innovation, renewable energy, healthcare, education, agriculture and defense, the President has addressed business forums in Moldova and North Macedonia and will also address such a forum in Romania too. 

Stating that the President's visit to the three eastern European countries would be an important step in India's engagement with Europe, George remarked during a press briefing that the visits would "strengthen collaboration in three Ts: trade, technology, and tourism."

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"Due to their geo-strategic location at the crossroads of major transport routes with well-developed highways, rail, and energy corridors linking Southeastern and Central Europe, these countries have potential to play a significant role in regional trade and energy. It makes them a natural transport corridor through the Balkans, providing access to the wider European markets. These countries are keen to position themselves as gateway for Indian businesses to the Western Balkans and Europe. The visit would provide significant opportunity to the businesses from both sides to strengthen bilateral economic ties," he said.

From the announcements made by Murmu during her visits to Moldova and North Macedonia and after her bilateral meeting with the President of Romania, it was clear that India is not only positioning itself as a space where foreign dignitaries can train in IT, technical and financial skills but is also actively engaging foreign diplomats by offering them professional courses at the SSIFS.

During her visit to all the three countries, Murmu has announced that India is doubling its ITEC program training slots along with offering specialized programs in artificial intelligence which is in line with the country's policy of positioning itself as a global AI hub. Further, the President has announced India's decision to offer the foreign diplomats of these countries, the forthcoming professional course at the SSIFS, focusing again on artificial and cyber diplomacy. 

Moreover, India has invited all the three countries to join the other renewable energy and disaster response-related initiatives launched by the country. These include the International Solar Alliance (ISA); Coalition for Disaster Resilient Infrastructure (CDRI) and the Global Biofuels Alliance (GBA). 

Issuing a statement after her meeting with Romanian President Nicusor Dan on Thursday, Murmu noted that it was after three decades that an Indian President was visiting Romania and added that the bilateral partnership between the two nations was almost seven-decades old.

"We discussed all subjects of all bilateral interest. Both countries would support each other and attempt to double the bilateral trade within the next three years. Romania is a part of the EU and is a big supporter of India in the EU. With the India-EU free trade agreement (FTA) set to become a reality, our relationship is entering a new era. We reviewed the progress made over the last year, and have decided to deepen cooperation between the two nations. We will encourage trade and investment and will strengthen supply chain. We would encourage cooperation between the industrial bodies of both nations. The India-EU FTA agreed upon in January will open doors for our industry and skilled professionals. We will strengthen our partnership in the spheres of manufacturing, health, renewable energy, agriculture produce, fertilizers, science and technology, digital public infrastructure, AI, green hydrogen and pharmaceuticals," Murmu said.

The President further announced that both countries had signed three MoUs including an MoU on cooperation in science and technology to expand joint research and development and an MoU to set up an Indian Studies Chair at the Bucharest University with support from the India Council for Cultural Relations (ICCR) that she said would strengthen understanding of culture and society between both nations.

She further said that an MoU was signed in the field of sports too and also welcomed Romania's intention to join the Global Biofuels Alliance (GBA).  

During her visit to North Macedonia that concluded Wednesday, Murmu had announced India's decision to double ITEC training slots for North Macedonia along with offering a forthcoming professional course for its diplomats at the SSIFS.

Both sides also renewed an existing MoU on health for the next five years.

Noting that economic cooperation is an extremely important pillar of the India-North Macedonia bilateral relationship, she emphasized the need for greater cooperation between the two countries in key sectors, including IT/ITES, agriculture, food processing, pharmaceuticals, textiles and bio-tech, tourism, hospitality, and film-making and invited North Macedonia to participate in the World Audio Visual and Entertainment Summit (WAVES) event set to be held in India next year.

WAVES is an India-led platform to foster international collaboration in media, entertainment and the creative industries.

Murmu also welcomed North Macedonia's intent to join the ISA, CDRI and GBA, .stating that participation in these international initiatives would enable North Macedonia to draw on global best practices and technical expertise to promote renewable energy and disaster resilience.

During her visit to Moldova too, Murmu announced the doubling of ITEC training slots for Moldova, including specialized AI programs and offered the country participation in the forthcoming professional course for foreign diplomats at the SSIFS. Both these announcements were welcomed by Moldova.

Significantly, both sides finalized an MoU on cooperation in the field of higher education. 

"Around 2,000 Indian students are currently pursuing higher education, particularly in medical studies, in Moldova. Government of India has also accepted Moldova's proposal for the recognition of some of the degrees, including the Moldovan veterinary degree certificate, which will benefit students of Moldova by expanding their professional opportunities," secretary George said during a press briefing.

During the business forum, Indian companies expressed interest in participating in Moldova's ongoing economic modernization, officials said adding that the business delegation from India comprised of businessmen across various sectors, including agritech, AI and IT, consulting, defense, e-commerce and exports, engineering and construction, hospitality, human resources and workforce solutions, metals and manufacturing, pharma and healthcare, and venture capital and investments. 

While Moldova is already a member of the International Solar Alliance, an India-led multilateral initiative, the President invited Moldova to join India's other flagship multilateral initiatives, including the CDRI and the GBA, reflecting "the growing convergence between the two countries on sustainable development priorities." 

"The reform of multilateral organizations, particularly the United Nations, also came up during the discussions. They also discussed the importance of fight against global terrorism," secretary George said.

This comes in the backdrop of India rallying global support for its recently-launched bid for a non-permanent seat in the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) selection for which is scheduled to be held in 2027.

 While North Macedonia has explicitly reiterated its backing for India’s permanent membership in a reformed UNSC, the President held extensive bilateral discussions with her Moldovan counterpart on structural UNSC reforms. 

Romania has historically aligned with India on combatting global terrorism and maintaining a rules-based order. Significantly, all the three countries had condemned the dastardly Pahalgam terror attack of April 2025.

 

Discover more at New India Abroad.