His quiet presence in the city is ample evidence of the fact that his country, Spain, is looking forward to closer links with India.
Ex-Spanish president is in Mumbai to meet industrialist, politicians
His quiet presence in the city is ample evidence of the fact that his country, Spain, is looking forward to closer links with India. Jose Maria Aznar, former president of government of Spain, is here to engage in a fruitful dialogue with industrialists, businessmen, politicians with a view to strengthening ties between the two nations.
Aznar is reputed to be a leader whose quiet speak carries a lot of weight and he has been given the credit of bringing Spain to the forefront of the world stage. He has often spoken about building stability and encouraging development in Latin America, where Spain has many links.
Talking about his visit to India, the erstwhile president of the Centrist Democrat International (CDI) and vice-president of the International Democrat Union (IDU), said, “I am very happy to be here. This is my first trip to India. When I was in office, I never had the opportunity to come here.”
The visit has been initiated by the efforts of Indians like Harish Fabiani, chairman of Americorp Group and India Land, who played a pivotal role in bringing Aznar here. Last Diwali, the latter had visited an Indian gathering where the suggestion for this trip was mooted.
Aznar said that his trip was a huge opportunity for Spanish companies and people to know India and to make business with the country. “Spain is the eighth largest economy. Our earlier priorities were Latin America, Europe, North America and China. However, India is a large presence in the world today,” he said, adding that his next stop will be to Delhi.
Fabiani added, “Spain has been focussed on India for quite some time. But the two countries have had a very limited relationship in the broader sense. The reason for the president’s visit at this juncture is to add more force to the relationship - be it in the cultural or in the economic regions.”
On being asked what kind of an interaction would be mutually favourable, Aznar said, “We are not looking at just a Spanish presence here. We are also looking at India in Spain. It is a reciprocal interaction, one that will be mutually beneficial. I want to bring Indian business to Spain.”
Cesar Alba, the Spanish consul general in Mumbai, said that several Spanish companies were interested in India and that Indian companies have bought into companies there as well.
Also present on the occasion and a party to the dialogue was designer Poonam Soni whose collection - Gaudi Revived - got official patronage from the Spanish government. Perhaps indicative of the opening of relationships between the two countries, the collection will be launched in the Spanish Consulate in Mumbai soon and then at the Spanish embassy in Delhi. “I was inspired to do this line when I visited Barcelona,” she said.
With Spain being a gateway to many markets, is this visit expected to open new doors for the two countries? “We have kept this low key because we did not want to make a noise about it. But a lot of people are waiting to see what is the outcome of this trip and what Aznar will say when he returns home,” said Fabiani.
With inputs from Shanaya Lalkaka
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