'For 1.4 billion Indians': PM Modi receives Order of Makarios III award; highest honour in Cyprus
PM Modi and Cyprus President Nikos Christodoulides
NEW DELHI: Cyprus on Monday honoured Prime Minister
Narendra Modi
with the Grand Cross of the Order of Makarios III, the highest honour in the island country.
Click here for live updates on PM Modi's foreign visit
Accepting the award, PM Modi thanked the Cyprus government, and remarked that his Grand Cross belongs to all 1.4 billion Indians.
"Humbled to receive the 'Grand Cross of the Order of Makarios III' of Cyprus. I dedicate it to the friendship between our nations," PM Modi said.
— narendramodi (@narendramodi)
The prime minister is in Cyprus as part of a three-nation visit. His next destination is Canada, where he will attend the
G7 Summit
.
In the final leg of his tour, the PM will stop in Croatia.
Also Read | PM Modi on key 3-nation tour: Cyprus, Canada, Croatia on itinerary; what's on his agenda?
This is PM Modi's first foreign visit post May's Operation Sindoor - India's precision strikes on terror targets in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir.
The operation, India's retaliation to the April 22 Pahalgam terrorist attack, triggered military hostilities with Pakistan.
After four days of clashes, Pakistan, on May 10, reached out to India for ceasefire. This led to cessation of hostilities.
Also Read | 'A message to Turkey': Why PM Modi's trip to Cyprus is significant
The prime minister's Cyprus visit, only the third by an Indian PM and the first since 2002, assumes significance due to the host nation's long-standing conflict with Turkey. During the India-Pakistan clashes, the latter used both Turkish and Chinese drones, which were successfully intercepted by India's air defence systems.
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