In images, South African President Cyril Ramaphosa receives grand welcome at Rashtrapati Bhavan

President Ramnath Kovind greets South African President Matamela Cyril Ramaphosa at Rashtrapati Bhavan | Praveen Jain/ThePrint

South African President Cyril Ramaphosa, the chief guest for the Republic Day Parade on Saturday spoke on a range of areas, including defence, security and trade.

New Delhi: Talks are underway between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and South African President Cyril Ramaphosa to strengthen ties between the two nations and step up cooperation in a range of areas, including defence, security and trade.

“New beginnings to old partnerships. PM @narendramodi warmly welcomes President of #SouthAfrica @CyrilRamaphosa ahead of delegation level talks. This is their fourth meeting within a year, highlighting enhanced engagement with South Africa & the African continent,” Raveesh Kumar, Spokesperson, Ministry of External Affairs, tweeted.

Ceremonial Reception in Rashtripati Bhawan

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Prime Minister Narendra Modi at Rashtrapati Bhavan| Praveen Jain/ThePrint

Prime Minister Narendra Modi and President Ramnath Kovind | Praveen Jain/ThePrint

Prime Minister Narendra Modi and President Ramnath Kovind | Praveen Jain/ThePrint

President Ramnath Kovind and Prime Minister Narendra Modi await the arrival of South African President Matamela Cyril Ramaphosa at the Ceremonial Reception at Rashtrapati Bhavan | Praveen Jain/ThePrint

President Ramnath Kovind and Prime Minister Narendra Modi await the arrival of South African President Matamela Cyril Ramaphosa at the Ceremonial Reception in Rashtrapati Bhavan | Praveen Jain/ThePrint

President Ramnath Kovind and Prime Minister Narendra Modi with South African President Matamela Cyril Ramaphosa and his wife for the Ceremonial Reception at Rashtrapati Bhavan | Praveen Jain/ThePrint

President Ramnath Kovind and Prime Minister Narendra Modi with South African President Matamela Cyril Ramaphosa and his wife at the Ceremonial Reception in Rashtripati Bhawan | Praveen Jain/ThePrint

South African President Matamela Cyril Ramaphosa given a grand guard of honour | Praveen Jain/ThePrint

South African President Matamela Cyril Ramaphosa given a grand guard of honour | Praveen Jain/ThePrint

In another tweet, he said, “Fortifying strategic partnership. PM @narendramodi and South African President @CyrilRamaphosa held wide-ranging talks on cooperation in defence & security, trade & investment, skill development, S&T, education and technical cooperation and multilateral forums.”

Ramaphosa will be the chief guest for the Republic Day Parade on Saturday.-PTI