India-Norway hold bilateral talks; focus on reformed multilateralism & counter-terrorism

India and Norway held a virtual bilateral discussion regarding issues on the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) via video teleconference on Tuesday. Department for Multilateral Cooperation Director-General Merete Fjell Brattested led the Norwegian delegation which includes several Foreign Ministry officials as well as those from their Mission in New Delhi and New York. Indian officials from the Ministry of External Affairs, PMI New York and Indian Embassy in Oslo and were led by MEA's JS (UNP & Summits) Prakash Gupta. 

India-Norway to 'work closely'

According to the official press release, Ministry of External Affairs informed that both India and Norway have decided to work together to improve cooperation between the countries during their UNSC 2021-22 tenure as non-permanent members. During the virtual talk, the two countries discussed a variety of issues including the UNSC agenda and the latest developments. The Indian officials also briefed the Norwegian officials about its 'priorities' during the UNSC tenure which includes reformed multilateralism and counter-terrorism among other things. 

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"Both sides decided to work closely and further deepen cooperation during their upcoming tenure as non-permanent members of the UNSC for the period 2021-22. They held wide-ranging discussions on issues on the UN Security Council agenda and recent developments. The Indian delegation briefed Norway on its priorities during its upcoming UNSC tenure including reformed multilateralism, counter-terrorism and use of ICT’s for peacekeeping," read the press release by the Ministry of External Affairs.

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On the other hand, India and Russia held a discussion on UNSC related issues on December 2 as per the statement issued by MEA. The two countries agreed to 'deepen cooperation' in terms of counter-terrorism measures at multilateral platforms. The Indian delegation was led by MEA Secretary (West) Vikas Swarup while the Russian delegation was led by Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation Sergey Vasilyevich Vershinin.

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(With inputs from ANI & PTI)