PM Narendra Modi invites BIMSTEC leaders to swearing-in ceremony

• India has invited leaders of BIMSTEC for the swearing-in ceremony of PM Narendra Modi
  
• India is reportedly not going to invite Imran Khan in the swearing-in ceremony
  
• The invites were sent keeping in mind the government’s plan to focus on 'neighbourhood first' policy, said Ministry of External Affairs
  

India has invited leaders of BIMSTEC (The Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation) member states for the swearing-in ceremony of Prime Minister Narendra Modi for his second term on 30 May.

However, India is reportedly not going to invite Imran Khan in the swearing-in ceremony of Narendra Modi. Recently both PM Narendra Modi and Imran Khan had a telephonic conversation after the victory of BJP in India where they talked about creating trust and an environment free of terrorism were a must to foster peace and prosperity in the region.

Ministry of External Affairs spokesperson Raveesh Kumar said that the government has also invited Kyrgyzstan president Sooronbay Jeenbekov and Prime Minister of Mauritius Pravind Jugnauth to the ceremony.

In addition, Sri Lankan president Maihtr Maithripala Sirisena, Nepal Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli are reportedly going to attend the ceremony. Bangladesh President Abdul Hamid is also likely to attend the ceremony. However, Myanmar state counsellor Aung San Suu Kyi is yet to make a decision.

The President of the Kyrgyz Republic, current Chair of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation, and the Prime Minister of Mauritius -- the Chief Guest at this year's Pravasi Bhartiya Divas, had also been invited, External Affairs Ministry spokesman Raveesh Kumar said here on Monday.

The members of Bimstec (The Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation) are Bangladesh, India, Myanmar, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Nepal and Bhutan, which are among the countries dependent on the Bay of Bengal.

The invites were sent keeping in mind the government’s plan to focus on 'neighbourhood first' policy, Ministry of External Affairs spokesperson Raveesh Kumar.