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New Delhi, India.  The Lehendakari, Patxi Lopez, concluded his trade mission trip in New Delhi last Wednesday, during which he launched relationships between companies in the Basque Country and in India.  He ended his trip with a reception with the local Basque community, an event that the Lehendakari carries out as part of all his trips abroad.  In this instance, the reception took place at the hotel where the Basque delegation stayed in New Delhi, and also in attendance were nearly 100 others including representatives of Basque Chambers of Commerce, Confebask (entrepreners association) and others, besides Basque aid-workers in the region.

In his farewell speech the Lehendakari stressed the leadership of the Basque country in many areas of business interests in which India is involved, such as the automotive sector, renewable energy, urban development, shipping or tourism, and asked those attending the official reception to serve as the "gateway" to this country for those who want to make the jump to India.

The Lehendakari also stated that the key factor to any further development outside of Euskadi is the permanent cessation of ETA violence.   “And if despite ETA we have managed to build a modern society that is the Euskadi of today, why not now!” he declared.  In the same way, Lopez assured that he was leaving with a positive feeling from this mission and that he hopes to concretize the facts in the midterm.  “India is a country with enormous potential and Euskadi has to begin to convert itself into another piece of this great country,” he added.

Solidarity

During the first part of his trip the Lehendakari had the opportunity to visit various charity projects promoted by the Basque society in India, thanks to the involvement of the Basque Agency for Cooperation and Development in the area of Anantapur. “During this trip I have had the opportunity to get to know those who have succeeded in converting the cold hard cash into real people.  Into people who can have sustainable gardens; raise cattle; obtain energy thanks to biogas; work in a small company; have health care during pregnancy; or go to elementary school thanks to the effort that begins in Euskadi but that continues here,” he explained.