PM Modi and Italy’s Meloni Hold Bilateral Talks, Launch Joint Initiative Against Terror Financing

On Sunday, India and Italy declared a new collaborative effort in regard to financing terrorism as Prime Minister of India Narendra Modi held a meeting with Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni on the margins of the G20 Summit in Johannesburg to advance bilateral relations in various spheres, such as trade, defence and security.

"Had a very good meeting with Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni. The India-Italy Strategic Partnership is growing from strength to strength, greatly benefitting the people of our nations," PM Modi said in a post on social media.

"India and Italy are announcing a Joint Initiative for cooperation in combating financing of terrorism. This is a necessary and timely effort, which will strengthen humanity’s fight against terrorism and its support networks," PM Modi added.

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MELONI Said Solidarity on DELHI BLAST

The Prime Minister of Italy made a stand in solidarity with India over the terror attack in Delhi and once again made it clear that Italy was very much willing to collaborate with India in the fight against the menace of terror.

On November 10 evening, a high intensity car blast occurred in the vicinity of Red Fort Metro Station in Delhi causing the death of at least 15 people and injuring over 20 others.

In an attempt to cement their relationship, the two leaders signed the India/ItalyJoint Initiative to Counter Financing of Terrorism, an official framework that solidifies the commitment of both countries to eliminate the terror groups and disrupt the flow of illicit funds as well as enhance cooperation at the international level.

According to a Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) statement, the project will intensify the bilateral and multilateral cooperation at the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) and Global Counter Terrorism Forum (GCTF) among others. The two nations decided to strengthen information-sharing, capacity-building and coordination to deal with terror financing and money laundering.

INDIA Italy relationship grows in the major sectors

PM Modi and Meloni assessed the progress made towards the India-Italy Strategic Partnership and stated that they felt content with the progress made in the main sectors. "Both leaders adopted the ‘India-Italy Joint Initiative to Counter Financing of Terrorism’," the MEA said. It observed that the two had evaluated cooperation in trade, investment, defence, security, space, science and technology and education positively.

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The leaders emphasized progress according to the Joint Strategic Action Plan 202529 that will contribute to the increase in the economic growth and enhancing institutional collaboration. They also embraced the business fora of this year that took place in New Delhi and Brescia where both industries of the two countries participated heavily.

The Italian leader reiterated the support that Italy gave in the end of a mutually beneficial, India-EU Free Trade Agreement, and showed optimism regarding the AI Impact Summit, which India is to make in 2026.

"A friendly and positive discussion, with a shared commitment to further strengthen the partnership between Italy and India in the coming years," Meloni posted on X.

In 2023–24, with the help of the increasing industrial and technological collaborations, India-Italy trade reached about USD 15 billion. Since 2000, Italian Foreign Direct Investment in India has amounted to around USD 4 billion and this includes the manufacturing sector, infrastructure, fashion sector, automotive components and renewable energy.

Their encounter in Johannesburg is a follow-up after their short-lived encounter in the G7 Summit in Kananaskis this year.

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