Naidu meets Iran, Nepal and Bangladesh leaders ahead of NAM summit at Azerbaijan

Vice President Venkaiah Naidu on Friday met the leaders of Iran, Nepal and Bangladesh ahead of the 18th Summit of Heads of State and Government of the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) here.

Naidu, who is leading the Indian delegation to the NAM summit, was earlier received by Azerbaijan President Ilham Aliyev upon his arrival at the summit venue.

The Vice President interacted with Iran President Hassan Rouhani on the sidelines of the summit, the official Twitter account of Naidu said.

Naidu also met Prime Ministers of Nepal and Bangladesh K P Sharma Oli and Sheikh Hasina at the leaders' lounge at the NAM summit, it said in another tweet.

The theme for the summit is "Upholding the Bandung Principles to ensure concerted and adequate response to the challenges of contemporary world".

India is a founding member of NAM, which is one of the largest gatherings of world leaders.

The vice president's visit is expected to further strengthen India's engagement with NAM and its member countries, the ministry of external affairs said in a statement.