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Data on the foreign visits of Prime Ministers reveals that Indian Prime Ministers made 264 visits to 79 different countries across the globe between 1999 and 2024. Of these, 65 countries were visited less than 5 times each. The US topped the list with 22 visits (including visits to the UNGA), followed by Russia with 17 visits.
In today’s globalized world, diplomacy between nations has almost become an indispensable part of everyday affairs. Driven by factors such as expanding economies, technological advancements, national security, and other critical issues, countries engage in business, and trade, and also form alliances to safeguard their social and economic interests. For instance, Prime Minister (PM) Narendra Modi recently visited the United States of America (USA) for the Quadrilateral Security Dialogue (Quad) Summit, an informal forum comprising the USA, Australia, Japan, and India. The group was formed to ensure that sea routes in the Indo-Pacific region remain free from military or political influence and to counterbalance China’s growing dominance. In addition to these goals, national representatives also discuss a range of critical issues, including technology, security, disaster relief, environmental protection, and climate change affecting the entire world.
Similarly, numerous other summits, such as the G5, G7, G20, BRICS, Indo-EU, and Indo-ASEAN summits, bring together national representatives to address various political and social challenges. Bilateral diplomacy between nations is also common, where discussions and decisions are made on specific issues of mutual concern.
In this context, we examine the trends in foreign visits by India’s Prime Ministers in the last two decades.
Methodology
In India, the official foreign visits by the Union Ministers, Chief Ministers, State Ministers, and Central and State Officials and Delegates require prior political approval by the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO). The PMO and Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) have published data about foreign visits (hereafter called as “visits”) by Prime Ministers (PMs) of India since the year 1999.
Dataful has curated foreign visits data available on the PMO & MEA website, and the same is used in the story. The analysis in the story is for the period of February 1999 to September 2024.
Note: It must be noted each country visited by PMs is considered a separate visit though multiple countries were part of the same trip.
Average Number of Foreign Visits by PMs Increased in the Last Decade
As per the data, a total of 264 foreign visits were made by PMs between 1999 and 2024. The number of visits steadily increased from 1999 to 2004. From 2005 to 2014, a total of 96 visits were made, averaging 10 visits per year, with the highest number recorded in 2011 at 12 visits.
From 2015 to September 2024, there were 132 foreign visits, averaging 15 visits per year, despite the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, which saw no visits in 2020 and only 4 in 2021. Over the entire 25-year period, the highest number of visits was in 2015 with 28, followed by 2018 with 22.
When compared by Prime Ministers, Narendra Modi leads with 141 visits, accounting for 55% of the total 264 visits made between 1999 and 2024. Manmohan Singh followed with 92 visits (35%), while Atal Bihari Vajpayee made 31 foreign visits.
Regarding expenditure incurred on these visits, data from the PMO website shows that a total of ₹1,588 crores was spent on foreign visits by PMs from 1999 to 2019. Of this, ₹144 crores were spent during Atal Bihari Vajpayee’s tenure (Feb 1999 to Dec 2003), ₹795 crores during Manmohan Singh’s tenure (July 2004 to March 2014), and ₹588 crores during Narendra Modi’s tenure (June 2014 to Nov 2019). Expenditure data from 2020 to 2024 is not yet available on the PMO website. It has to be noted that these are absolute amounts not adjusted for inflation.
The USA and Russia are the Most Visited Countries
Between 1999 and 2024, a total of 79 countries were visited across the globe. Of these, 65 countries were visited less than 5 times each; 31 countries were visited once, 16 countries twice, 7 countries three times, and 11 countries four times. Eight countries were visited between 5 to 9 times, while six countries were visited 10 times or more each.
The United States topped the list with 22 visits (including visits to the UNGA), followed by Russia with 17 visits. Japan, France, Germany, and China were also frequently visited, with 12, 11, 11, and 10 visits, respectively.
When looking at visits by continent, 36 Asian countries were visited a total of 126 times. The five most visited Asian countries were Japan (12 visits), China (10 visits), Singapore (7 visits), Indonesia (7 visits), and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) (7 visits). Asian countries are followed by 18 European and 3 European/Asian countries that were visited 55 and 20 times, respectively, totalling 75 visits. After Russia, Germany, and France with 17, 11, and 11 visits, respectively, the United Kingdom (UK), and Italy, were the most visited countries with 9, and 4 times, respectively.
Nine American countries, including those in North and South America and the Caribbean, were visited 35 times. The USA dominated with 22 visits, while Brazil and Canada followed with 5 and 2 visits, respectively. 12 African countries were visited 24 times, with South Africa being the most visited, with 8 visits.
Visits to Nepal and UAE were made only from 2014
If one were to look at countries visited five or more times between 1999 and 2024, a total of 14 countries fall into this category. Among them, the USA stands out, having been visited in 18 out of the 25 years with 22 visits, followed by Russia, visited in 13 years with 17 visits. The case of the USA is not surprising since the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) also happens there, and PMs have attended the UNGA for multiple years.
Notably, Nepal and the UAE were not visited before 2014 and 2015, respectively. Nepal was visited five times from 2014 to 2024; twice each in 2014 and 2018, and once in 2022. The UAE was visited seven times between 2015 and 2024; once in 2015, 2018, 2019, 2022, and 2024, and twice in 2023. During this same period (2015 to 2024), only the USA had more visits (8) than the UAE.
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