Zagreb: President Ram Nath Kovind on Tuesday received Croatia's highest civilian order, the Grand Order of the King of Tomislav, during his official visit to the nation.
"President of India honoured with highest civilian order in #Croatia! During his State Visit to Croatia, #Presidentkovind is honoured with Grand Order of the King of Tomislav, the highest award of Croatia. #Presidentkovind dedicated it to India-Croatia friendship!" tweeted Raveesh Kumar, spokesperson of the Ministry of External Affairs on Tuesday.
The civilian order is awarded to heads of state for their contribution towards the strengthening of ties between the European nation and their respective country, amongst other things, according to Kumar.
Kovind, who is the first Indian President to visit Croatia, was earlier accorded a ceremonial welcome here. He is currently on a three-country trip from March 25 to April 4.
Welcoming Kovind, President of Croatia Kolinda Grabar-Kitarović said: "I hope that your State Visit will serve as a good base for enhancing relations between our two countries. The links between Croatia and India go way back."
"Croatia supports strengthening of EU-India cooperation on higher education, including through India’s GIAN programme and the @EUErasmusPlus programme," she tweeted.
"I am certain that the Program of Cultural Cooperation (until 2022), will stimulate greater cultural exchange and understanding between our two countries," the Croatian leader further said.
"Our economic cooperation, in particular, bilateral trade exchange and mutual investments must be strengthened. We are interested in exchanging experiences in the energy, ICT, defence and shipbuilding industries and the healthcare sector," the President also tweeted.
During his stay in Croatia from March 25 to March 28, Kovind is scheduled to meet with the Indian diaspora there along with addressing the Indian-Croatia business forum meeting along with his Croatian counterpart. He is also slated to give a speech at the University of Zagreb.
Following this, he shall emplane for the rest of his tour to the Latin American nations of Bolivia and Chile.
