Highlights:
- World leaders congratulated Modi on the milestone.
- Papua New Guinea called him a “role model.”
- Sri Lanka praised India’s transformation under his leadership.
- Trinidad and Tobago highlighted India’s growing global influence.
- Uruguay’s envoy credited Modi for improving people’s lives.
As Indian prime minister Narendra Modi prepares to become India’s longest-serving democratically elected prime minister on June 10, congratulatory messages have arrived from leaders around the world. Many praised his leadership, India’s economic progress, and his efforts to represent the interests of the Global South.
Leaders from Sri Lanka, Papua New Guinea, Trinidad and Tobago, and Uruguay were among those who marked the occasion. Several highlighted India’s growing influence and achievements during Modi’s years in office.
Papua New Guinea prime minister James Marape described Modi as “a role model and an example of leadership” in a personal video message.
“Lifting over 200 million people out of poverty to good life today is an amazing feat,” Marape said. He also expressed Papua New Guinea’s interest in strengthening its relationship with India.
The message reflected the close ties that have developed between the two leaders in recent years. During Modi’s visit to Papua New Guinea in May 2023, Marape attracted global attention when he welcomed the Indian prime minister by touching his feet at Port Moresby airport.
The visit took place during the Third Forum for India-Pacific Islands Cooperation Summit. It was the first visit by an Indian prime minister to the Pacific nation.
Sri Lankan President Anura Kumara Disanayaka also sent a letter to Modi. He said the achievement reflected the trust placed in him by the people of India over many years.
“This milestone is a testament not only to your years in office, but also to the trust and confidence that the people of the world’s largest democracy have repeatedly placed in your leadership,” he wrote.
Disanayaka also praised India’s economic and social progress. He said Modi’s vision had inspired people beyond India’s borders, including in Sri Lanka.
The message came as ties between India and Sri Lanka continue to grow. During Modi’s visit to Sri Lanka in April 2025, he received the Mitra Vibhushana, the country’s highest civilian honor awarded to a foreign dignitary. India also played a key role in supporting Sri Lanka during its 2022 economic crisis through financial and diplomatic assistance.
Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar of Trinidad and Tobago also congratulated Modi. She said that “under the leadership of Prime Minister Modi, India has evolved as a leading voice on global matters”.
According to a statement, she highlighted Modi’s rise from humble beginnings to leading a nation of 1.4 billion people across three terms. She also pointed to India’s achievements in foreign policy, economic growth, infrastructure development, and broader social and economic progress.
Modi became the first Indian prime minister in 26 years to make a bilateral visit to Trinidad and Tobago when he traveled there from July 3–4, 2025.
Uruguay’s Ambassador to India, Alberto Antonio Guani Amarilla, also praised Modi’s leadership and commitment to the people of India.
“I am sure that you must be celebrating because he has done a great job in these 12 years. We understand. I do not know how India was before, but I heard from many of my colleagues and friends of mine that he has really transformed this country, that he has done a great job, and that he has also encouraged the Indian people to have a better life—to have a more comfortable life—and in a better way in which he has really devoted himself towards the well-being of his own people,” Amarilla told ANI.
He further said: “It is a country where people rely on seeing how the future is going to be. All that also has a lot to do with the encouragement, with the positioning that Prime Minister Modi has done and how India has evolved to be right now, not only in a way to be the third-largest economy, but at the same time, his real objective: to make India a developed country by 2047…”
An artist’s rendering of the project.