IMEC: 'India-Middle East-Europe Economic Corridor will be a game changer like the Silk Route', said PM Modi

Prime Minister Narendra Modi said that the India-Middle East-Europe Economic Corridor (IMEC) will prove to be a big game changer like the Silk Road. An agreement for IMEC was reached during the G20 summit hosted by India last year.

In an interview, PM Modi said about IMEC, 'Gulf countries have played a positive role. America and Europe have also supported India on this. Pictures of Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, PM Narendra Modi, and US President Joe Biden shaking hands at the G20 have made headlines globally. He said, that when we work for global good, there are no ifs and buts. You can take the world with you and that's what I tried to do. You tell me how the G8 and G20 came into existence. We should never deviate from the issues for which they have been formed. I reassured everyone. There were some people I needed to talk to privately. I did the same. Secondly, I intended that I would not bring the proposal in the last session. I will do it so quickly that people will be surprised. Therefore, I completed the announcement work for the second day on the first day itself. This was my strategy and that strategy worked.

On the question of shaking hands between Biden and Mohammed bin Salman, PM Modi said that he is friends with both leaders. He said, we have worked on IMEC, which is going to be a big game changer like the Silk Route. The Gulf countries had a positive and active role. India got a chance to play a good role. America and Europe were with us. Everyone thought there would be a solid and positive outcome. So we used to meet on that. The PM further said, so there was an opportunity to bring the Saudi King and President Biden together and I have a good friendship with both of them.

An MoU for IMEC was signed by India, the US, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Saudi Arabia, France, Germany, Italy, and the European Union during the G20 summit held in New Delhi in September last year.