Belarusian President Aleksandr Lukashenko has extended greetings to India's President Droupadi Murmu and Prime Minister Narendra Modi as the country celebrates Independence Day, BelTA learned from the press service of the Belarusian leader.

“I am happy to note that the dialog between Minsk and New Delhi is carried out in the spirit of equality, mutual interest in deepening cooperation and its practical content. This is evidenced by the opening of regular flights between our countries by Belavia airline, the interest of Indian partners in establishing joint ventures in the production of agricultural machinery, electric vehicles and pharmaceuticals, as well as the building up of fruitful scientific, educational, tourist and cultural ties. I am convinced that thanks to joint efforts this positive trend will continue, including through visits at various levels,” the president said in his message of greetings to Draupadi Murmu.

In his message of greetings to Narendra Modi the Belarusian president emphasized that Belarus has always been and will remain a reliable friend and partner of India in the European region. “Over the years of our interaction, we have been able to build effective ties in economy, trade, industry, science, technology and culture, and today we are opening new areas of cooperation in addition to the already existing large-scale projects,” the president added.

Aleksandr Lukashenko reiterated Minsk's focus on expanding the dialogue with New Delhi not only on the bilateral track but also within the framework of international organizations: “We are very grateful to India for the work done on Belarus' accession to the SCO, and we expect India to ratify the relevant memorandum as soon as possible in order to become a full-fledged member of the organization. We are also interested in joining the BRICS dimension, therefore we have sent an application and hope for your support in this matter,” he said.

The Belarusian head of state said he would be glad to meet Narendra Modi in Minsk or New Delhi or hold talks during international events to discuss ways to raise the Belarusian-Indian relations to the level of strategic partnership.