Three envoys presented their credentials to the President of India, Smt. Pratibha Devisingh Patil at a ceremony at Rashtrapati Bhavan here today. This was the first Credentials Presentation Ceremony since the General Elections concluded last month and the new Government was sworn-in.

The envoys who presented their credentials were: - His Excellency, Mr. Abdul Azeez Yoosuf, the High Commissioner of the Maldives, His Excellency, Mr. Felix Badji, the High Commissioner of Gambia, and His Excellency, Mr. Khider Haroun Ahmed Abdulrazig, the Ambassador of Sudan.

In her interaction with the envoys, the President referred to the just concluded General Elections in India and the massive mobilization of polling personnel for the conduct of the elections, which were completed peacefully and successfully. The President also said India would continue to work for peace, stability and development in its region and the world. As a developing country, India was committed to building strong relations with fellow developing countries given the commonality of concerns, challenges and aspirations. She expressed the hope that even while dealing with the current global financial crises, the long pending issue of representation for developing countries in global financial institutions would be addressed. The President affirmed that India wanted to intensify its bilateral relations with the countries represented by the envoys.

The credential presentation ceremony was attended by the senior members of the missions, senior officials of the Ministry of External Affairs and Rashtrapati Bhavan.

The release issued at 1845 hrs