New Delhi [India], September 3 (ANI): Belgian Prime Minister Bart De Wever shared on Thursday that his intended gift for Prime Minister Narendra Modi, a replica of the India Gate monument crafted completely from fine Belgian chocolate, failed to endure the journey to India.

Speaking at a joint press meet alongside Prime Minister Narendra Modi following their meeting at Hyderabad House in New Delhi, the visiting leader assured that a replacement will be sent to his Indian counterpart.

'I had actually planned to present to Prime Minister Modi a fitting gift - a sculpture of India Gate entirely made out of the best Belgian chocolates. But, unlike the real India Gate, which has stood for almost a century, the chocolate version didn't even survive the journey to India. Chocolate is excellent for diplomacy, but not excellent for diplomatic travel, we noticed. But no worries, we have a back-up in Belgium, and one way or another, I will get it to Prime Minister Modi in one piece. That's an ambition I leave India with today,' the visiting PM said.

De Wever explained that the India Gate landmark was intentionally chosen for the chocolate model because it serves as an emblem of historical ties and future cooperation between India and Belgium. He noted that the miniature piece featured a magnified inscription paying tribute to Indian troops who fought and lost their lives in Flanders Fields during the First World War.

'We chose India Gate deliberately, as a symbol whose meaning speaks directly to our shared history and future partnership. Because India Gate carries a deep message. On the sculpture, the chocolate version, we enlarged a part of the inscription that commemorates Indian soldiers who fought and fell in Flanders Fields during the First World War. More than a century ago, Indian soldiers travelled thousands of miles to fight on Belgian soil, and we have not forgotten this. We have not forgotten their courage and their sacrifice. It is a part of our history and of our shared history, and it reminds us that peace can never be taken for granted,' De Wever said.

The Belgium Prime Minister remarked that his official visit to India, representing the first such engagement by a head of government from Brussels in twenty years, was deeply significant despite the prolonged interval. He praised the profound modernisation India has experienced, particularly under leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

'I also want to thank Prime Minister Modi for the very warm welcome, the hospitality, and the very candid bilateral that we had. It is, for me, as you have said, Prime Minister, a real personal pleasure as a citizen of Antwerp to finally come to India. But it is also particularly meaningful to be here as the first Belgian Prime Minister in 20 years, and that's a very long time. It's too long. In those 20 years, India has changed enormously, and certainly in the period of the leadership of Prime Minister Modi,' said PM De Wever.

"Today, you are not only the world's largest democracy but also the fastest-growing major economy, which has become an economic and technological powerhouse and a major geopolitical factor whose voice carries way before, way beyond, this region. For Belgium, this makes India an increasingly important partner, and I believe my country also has a lot to offer to India in return. We are a little bit smaller in scale, just a little bit, but we are one of the world's most open and internationally connected economies. We have built our prosperity on trade and access to global markets," he added. (ANI)