President Ram Nath Kovind arrived in Amsterdam on Monday, April 4, 2022, on the final leg of his two-nation visit — the first presidential trip to the Netherlands after 34 years — during which he will hold discussions with the top leadership of the European country.
President Kovind arrived here from Turkmenistan where he held talks with his Turkmen counterpart Serdar Berdimuhamedov and the two sides agreed to expand bilateral trade and energy cooperation to further strengthen the multifaceted partnership. He is the first Indian President to visit independent Turkmenistan.
"Goedemiddag Nederland! President Ram Nath Kovind arrives in Amsterdam on the final part of his two-nation visit. The presidential visit to the Netherlands comes after 34 years since the visit of President Venkataraman in 1988," the president's office tweeted.
During his visit to the Netherlands from April 4 to 7 at the invitation of King Willem Alexander and Queen Maxima, President Kovind will hold discussions with them and Prime Minister Mark Rutte.
His visit assumes significance as India and the Netherlands are celebrating 75 years of the establishment of diplomatic relations in 2022.
Later, President Kovind visited Keukenhof, one of the world's largest flower garden, where he was received by Minister of Foreign Affairs, Netherlands Wopke Hoekstra.
"President Kovind was received at Keukenhof by the Dutch Foreign Minister & Deputy PM @WBHoekstra. President Kovind spoke about the multifaceted partnership between the two countries & vibrant people-to-people connect," President Kovind's Twitter account posted.
"President Ram Nath Kovind and the First Lady Smt Savita Kovind visited Keukenhof in Amsterdam. The President named a new breed of yellow tulips ‘Maitri’~ symbolic of the special & enduring friendship between India and the Netherlands," another tweet read.
In 2021, during the Virtual Summit between the Prime Ministers of the two countries, a Strategic Partnership on Water was launched to enhance the level of engagement between the two sides in this important sector.
Cooperation in sectors such as agriculture, health, urban development, science and technology are other important pillars of the bilateral relationship.
The Netherlands is also an important economic and commercial partner of India with the country being India’s fourth largest FDI source. It also hosts the largest Indian diaspora in continental Europe.
