New Delhi, Mar 17: Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his New Zealand counterpart Christopher Luxon visited the historic Gurudwara Rakab Ganj Sahib in New Delhi on Monday.

PM Modi and New Zealand Prime Minister Luxon paid obeisance at the Gurudwara and paid respect to the religious and cultural heritage of the Sikh community.

Earlier in the day, Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his New Zealand counterpart Christopher Luxon reaffirmed their commitment to strengthening bilateral relations, expanding trade, deepening defence cooperation, and maintaining peace in the Indo-Pacific region.

Addressing the media after holding talks at New Delhi's Hyderabad House, the two leaders also took a firm stance against terrorism and agreed to enhance people-to-people ties.

Luxon, who is on his first official visit to India from March 16-20, is the first New Zealand Prime Minister to visit the country in nine years.

In his remarks, PM Modi acknowledged the New Zealand PM's longstanding association with India.

"We all saw the way he created a festive atmosphere by playing Holi in Auckland a few days ago. His affection for the Indian-origin community in New Zealand is evident from the large delegation accompanying him on this visit," PM Modi said.

The visiting leader will join the inaugural session of the Raisina Dialogue, India's flagship conference on geopolitics and geo-economics, as chief guest which PM Modi said reflects his leadership and engagement with India. PM Modi noted that their discussions covered a range of topics, including trade, security, and investment, leading to several key agreements.

The two leaders agreed to institutionalise defence and security cooperation, focusing on joint exercises, training programmes, and collaboration in the defence industry.

Addressing terrorism, both leaders strongly condemned attacks such as the 2019 Christchurch attack and the 2008 Mumbai attacks, reiterating that terrorism in any form is unacceptable.

"Strict action against the culprits of terrorist attacks is necessary. We will continue to cooperate against terrorist, separatist, and fundamentalist elements," said PM Modi, urging New Zealand's continued support in addressing anti-India activities by illegal elements in the country.

Luxon, while addressing the media, praised the strong people-to-people ties between the two nations. "We have just concluded a series of highly productive meetings and witnessed a number of government-to-government arrangements that will strengthen the growing ties between India and New Zealand," he said.

--IANS

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