Indian ambassador to Romania and Moldova Manoj Kumar Mohapatra, on Tuesday paid an official visit to Salaj County, where he met officials of the county and local administration to discuss economic, educational and cultural cooperation.

The meeting in Zalau, the county seat, was attended by the Chair of the Salaj County Council (CJ) Dinu Iancu-Salajanu, the prefect of the county, Cristian Claudiu Birsan and the mayor of Zalau, Florin Florian.

According to the county administration, discussions aimed to identify concrete directions of cooperation between Salaj County and India, one of the fastest developing economies in the world, as well as opportunities for the development of economic ties and joint educational and cultural projects.

'We are glad that Salaj County is on the diplomatic agenda of the Republic of India. I believe that such meetings are important for strengthening institutional relations and for identifying opportunities for collaboration, especially in the economic area, by developing ties with the business community, but also in education and culture,' says the chairman of the Salaj County Council, Dinu Iancu-Salajanu in a social media post.

Photo credit: Cristian Claudiu Birsan / Facebook

He added that the completion of the portion of the Transylvania Highway that crosses the county will be an advantage in attracting new investments.

'Salaj enjoys a strategic positioning in the centre of the Nord-Vest region, and the completion of the section of the Transylvania Highway that crosses the county will create a competitive advantage in attracting new investments. Salaj is open to cooperation and international dialogue,' said Salajanu.

The prefect of the county, Cristian Claudiu Birsan, highlighted, in his turn, the development potential of the county, the expanding infrastructure and the willingness of the authorities to support the investment initiatives.

'The Salaj County Prefecture appreciates this visit as an important step in strengthening international cooperation relations and in promoting the county as a partner open to dialogue and investment,' reads a message sent by the Salaj Prefecture.

The mayor of Zalau, Florin Florian, said that the meeting represents an important step for strengthening bilateral relations and identifying joint projects.

'Zalau is a city open to the development of international relations and cooperation, and today's meeting, which aimed to strengthen bilateral relations and identify new opportunities for collaboration and joint projects, is an important step in that direction,' said the mayor. AGERPRES (RO - editing by: Sebastian Olaru; EN - writing by: Corneliu-Aurelian Colceriu)