Prime Minister Narendra Modi will depart for Italy on Thursday to participate in the 50th G7 Summit, marking his first international trip since beginning his third term, Foreign Secretary Vinay Mohan Kwatra announced on Wednesday.

PM Modi has been invited by Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni to participate in the G7 Outreach Summit being held in the southern region of Apulia on June 14.

“At the invitation of the Prime Minister of Italy, Prime Minister Narendra Modi will be traveling to Apulia, Italy tomorrow to participate in the 50th G7 Summit which is to be held there on June 14 where India has been invited as an Outreach Country,” Kwatra said.

“It will also afford him an opportunity to engage with other world leaders present at the G7 Summit on issues of importance to India as also to the Global South,” he added

During his visit, PM Modi is expected to hold bilateral talks with his Italian counterpart, as confirmed by Kwatra at the press briefing. The two Prime Ministers are expected to review the entire gamut of bilateral ties and provide directions for the next steps, Kwatra said.

Italy is the Chair of G7 this year and is hosting the Summit of the informal grouping of seven of the world’s advanced economies, which includes Canada, France, Germany Japan the United Kingdom, and the United States, as well as the European Union.

This will be India’s eleventh participation in the G7 summit and PM Modi’s fifth consecutive attendance at the event.

(With ANI input)