New Delhi, October 05, 2026

Swiss Confederation President Guy Parmelin began his three-day State visit to India on Monday, with closer economic and strategic cooperation forming the central theme of his engagements. He received a ceremonial welcome at Rashtrapati Bhavan, where President Droupadi Murmu and Prime Minister Narendra Modi welcomed him. The visit comes with discussions expected to cover trade, investment, technology, innovation, mobility and other areas of mutual interest.

Parmelin is visiting India at the invitation of Prime Minister Modi and has been accompanied by a high-level delegation comprising senior government officials and business leaders. The trip marks his first State visit to India and his second visit to the country this year. He had previously travelled to New Delhi in February 2026 for the AI Impact Summit. During the current visit, he is scheduled to meet President Murmu, who will host an official banquet in his honour, while External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar will also meet the Swiss President.

Prime Minister Modi and Parmelin are set to hold bilateral discussions on Monday, with their agenda expected to include trade and investment, science and technology, innovation, mobility, culture and people-to-people ties. The two leaders will also exchange views on regional and global developments and cooperation through multilateral platforms. The discussions are expected to review existing areas of collaboration while exploring opportunities for deeper engagement.

An important economic engagement during the visit will be Parmelin’s participation in the second India-EFTA Prosperity Summit on October 7. The event will mark one year since the India-EFTA Trade and Economic Partnership Agreement (TEPA) came into force. The Ministry of External Affairs has identified Switzerland as India’s largest trade and investment partner among the EFTA nations, underlining the country’s significance in India’s economic relationship with the grouping.

“India and Switzerland share longstanding friendly relations. This visit will further strengthen bilateral relations, building upon the regular high-level exchanges and deepen cooperation in new areas of mutual interest,” the MEA said. The visit follows several years of high-level engagement, including Prime Minister Modi’s official trips to Switzerland in 2016 and 2018 and the Indian President’s last State visit to Switzerland in 2019. Parmelin’s visit is expected to add further momentum to cooperation between the two countries across established as well as emerging areas.