This will be his maiden visit to these countries and he will call on the top leadership and meet with Foreign Ministers there

Minister of State for the External Affairs V Muraleedharan will be paying an official visit to Guatemala, Jamaica and the Bahamas from July 5-10, 2021

According to the Ministry of External Affairs, this will be his first visit to these countries and he will call on the top leadership and meet with Foreign Ministers of these countries during the visit.

Muraleedharan’s visit to Guatemala (July 5-6) will follow up on the visit in May 2018 of Vice President M Venkaiah Naidu.

He will also meet the Guatemalan Minister of Economy. He will interact with the business community including the Heads of Chambers of Commerce & Industry of Guatemala with a view to enhance bilateral trade (currently US$ 309.86 million) and boost investments. MoS will also interact with the Indian community in Guatemala.

Guatemala is the current Pro-tempore President of Central American Integration system (SICA) with which India has an established engagement mechanism.

The MoS will visit Jamaica from July7-8. This will be the first visit by an Indian Minister to Jamaica in 4 years.

In addition to his official engagements, MoS Muraleedharan will inaugurate the bust of Mahatma Gandhi at May Pen city and visit the Old Harbour Bay where the first Indians landed in Jamaica 175 years ago.

He will also interact with a wide cross-section of the Jamaican society comprising business leaders and Indian community members.

In the last leg of the three-nation visit, MoS Muraleedharan will land in The Bahamas on July 9. This will be the first standalone high level visit from India to this Caribbean island.

In addition to his official meetings, the MoS will interact with the Bahamian society, comprising of business leaders and Indian community members.

India’s relations with Jamaica and Bahamas have been cordial and based on democracy, membership of the commonwealth, English language and cultural heritage. They also support each other’s candidatures at various multilateral fora.

The visit of MoS will provide an opportunity for reviewing the progress in India's bilateral ties and further strengthening of the country's multifaceted relationship with all the three countries, including in SICA and the Caribbean Community (CARICOM).