New Delhi: The president, Droupadi Murmu, on Sunday embarked on a three-nation state visit to Moldova, North Macedonia and Romania. Earlier, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) has described as a major push to deepen India’s engagement with the wider Eastern European region.
The tour, spanning July 19 to July 25, 2026, will take Murmu to two countries that have never before hosted an Indian head of state. Apart from that, this will be the first visit by an Indian president to Romania in more than three decades.
Moldova: A historic first stop
The first leg of the tour will see Murmu travel to Moldova on July 20, at the invitation of the Moldovan president, Maia Sandu. This will be the first-ever visit by an Indian president to the country.
During her stay in the Moldovan capital, Chisinau, Murmu is scheduled to hold bilateral talks with Sandu and is also expected to meet the president of Moldova’s parliament, Igor Grosu. Her itinerary includes an interaction with members of the Moldova-India Parliamentary Friendship Group, an address to a business forum, and an engagement with members of the Indian community resident in the country.
The MEA, in a statement issued on Friday, noted that India and Moldova enjoy warm and friendly relations, and that the visit would mark a historical milestone, elevating bilateral ties to what it termed a broad-based partnership. The statement pointed to good scope for mutually beneficial cooperation in agriculture, healthcare and pharmaceuticals, IT and education.
North Macedonia: Another maiden visit
From Moldova, Murmu will travel to North Macedonia from July 21 to 22, at the invitation of the North Macedonian president, Gordana Siljanovska-Davkova. This, too, will be the first visit by an Indian president to the Balkan nation.
In Skopje, Murmu is expected to hold talks with Siljanovska-Davkova and the North Macedonian prime minister, Hristijan Mickoski. She will also meet the president of the North Macedonian assembly and is scheduled to address the assembly during her visit. An address to the India-North Macedonia business forum is also on the itinerary.
The MEA noted that both sides have a keen interest in deepening economic ties in priority sectors such as agriculture, pharmaceuticals, science and technology, and IT and ITES.
Romania: Reviving ties after three decades
The final and longest leg of the tour will take the president to Romania from July 23 to 25, at the invitation of the Romanian president, Nicusor Dan. The visit will mark the first by an Indian president to Romania in more than three decades, and will be closely watched given Romania’s position as a European Union and Nato member state.
In Bucharest, Murmu is expected to engage with Dan, the interim Romanian prime minister, Ilie Bolojan, and senior legislative leaders. As with the other two legs of the tour, she is expected to address a bilateral business forum and interact with the local Indian diaspora.
The three-nation tour comes as India continues to expand its diplomatic outreach beyond its traditional partners, with Moldova and North Macedonia representing new frontiers for presidential-level engagement. Officials familiar with the planning of the visit indicated that the trip is intended to open new avenues for trade and investment across the region, even as none of the three countries has historically figured prominently in India’s bilateral engagement calendar.
Murmu’s tour is her latest overseas engagement since assuming office in July 2022, during which she has undertaken several state visits, including to the United Kingdom, Suriname and Serbia, among others.
The MEA is expected to issue further statements detailing agreements or memorandums of understanding, if any, signed during each leg of the visit, once the individual engagements conclude.