© picture alliance / Anadolu | Hafiz Ahmed
Indian Prime Minister Modi will visit the Netherlands on Friday, a year later than planned after his arrival was canceled last year due to military tensions with neighboring Pakistan.
The Netherlands is part of a trip during which the Indian prime minister will also visit Norway, Sweden, and Italy.
On Saturday, Modi and Prime Minister Jetten will sign a cooperation agreement on technology, economy, environment and defense. Chip machine maker ASML is expected to be one of the biggest beneficiaries, given India's growing need for semiconductor technology.
The visit is part of India's broader strategy to "be friends with everyone": it already maintains strategic partnerships with both Russia and Western countries, despite international criticism of the human rights situation under Modi's Hindu nationalist government.
Prime Minister Jetten will also raise the case of Dutch Insiya, abducted in 2016, a sensitive issue on which there is "frustration" within the cabinet. The girl, who was 2 years old at the time, was abducted by her father in September 2016 and remains in India.
Modi was also hosted by the royal couple and met with top Dutch entrepreneurs and the rapidly growing Indian community in the Netherlands, which now numbers more than 89,000 people. The Netherlands has the largest Hindu community in Europe after the United Kingdom.
Picture: © picture alliance / Anadolu | Hafiz Ahmed