New Delhi: The invitation to leaders of BIMSTEC member countries for Prime Minister Narendra Modi's swearing-in ceremony on May 30 is in line with the government's focus on the 'Neighbourhood First' policy, Ministry of External Affairs spokesperson Raveesh Kumar said on Monday.
Kumar added that an invite has also been extended to Kyrgyzstan's President Sooronbay Jeenbekov and to the Prime Minister of Mauritius Pravind Jugnauth for the occasion.
In 2014, when Modi won his first term, all the SAARC leaders, including the then Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif attended the swearing-in as part of invitations extended to all the member countries of the South Asian grouping.
Member countries of the Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation (BIMSTEC) include Bangladesh, Bhutan, Myanmar, Nepal, Sri Lanka, and Thailand besides India.
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