At the G7 Summit, Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni charmed social media with a new selfie, continuing the viral #Melodi trend from last year. Shortly after capturing the moment, Meloni shared a video on her official X handle, where both leaders were seen waving at the camera and greeting viewers with, "Hello from the Melodi team." PM Modi responded enthusiastically, tweeting, "Long live India-Italy friendship!"
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Their latest selfie follows a similar moment at the COP28 Summit in 2023, which Meloni had posted with the hashtag #Melodi. The mutual warmth between the two leaders was also evident at the G7, where they exchanged namaste gestures and shared a brief, friendly conversation upon meeting.
This summit marks PM Modi’s fifth consecutive participation, with India attending the last ten G7 summits. Italy, as the chair of this year's G7, hosted the event, which includes other major economies like Canada, France, Germany, Japan, the UK, and the US, along with the European Union.
In addition to their social media moments, PM Modi and PM Meloni held a bilateral meeting focused on enhancing defense and security cooperation between India and Italy. An official statement from the Ministry of External Affairs noted that the discussions aimed at boosting defense industrial collaboration and welcomed the forthcoming visit of the Italian aircraft carrier ITS Cavour and the training ship ITS Vespucci to India later this year.
The interactions at the G7 Summit, both formal and informal, highlight the strengthening ties between India and Italy, underscored by the personal rapport between their leaders.