The Belarus State University conferred the ProfessorHonoris CausaonPresident Pranab Mukherjeetoday (June 3, 2015) at a ceremony in Belarus.

In his acceptance speech, the President said thegesture was a reflection of the warmth of people of Belarus towards India and him. He accepts the Professor Honoris Causa on behalf of the people of India. He was in Belarus on the first ever State Visit by an Indian President. It is thus a privilege for him to have had this opportunity of visiting them and conveying India’s strong interest in further deepening the already substantive relationship with Belarus.

The President said relations between India and Belarus have developed quite rapidly over the past two decades. The relationship now spans several sectors ranging from trade and economic cooperation to science, technology, education and defence cooperation. He was confident that the outcomes and understandings reached during his discussions with the Belarusian leadership will help propel the relationship to an even higher trajectory in future.

The President said India has and will always remain committed to peaceful methods in its foreign policy. However, terrorism and extremism emanating from our shared neighbourhood remains a major security threat for India and for Belarus. Addressing this challenge requires greater cooperation among all countries and clarity of purpose. There is also need for more representative and inclusive structures of global governance. The serious political, military, economic, ecological and technological challenges of the 21st Century cannot be addressed using international instruments conceived at a different phase in human history.