India-Saudi Arabia partnership will give impetus to digital connectivity: PM Modi at bilateral meeting
The Saudi Crown Prince arrived in Delhi on a three-day visit and stayed back after the G20 Summit for the bilateral meeting.
After the conclusion of the two-day G20 Summit in Delhi, Prime Minister Narendra Modi held a meeting with Saudi Arabian Prime Minister and Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman Al Saud at the Hyderabad House in the national capital on Monday.
The Saudi Crown Prince arrived in Delhi on a three-day visit and stayed back after the G20 Summit for the bilateral meeting. He is also likely to co-chair the first leaders' meeting of the Strategic Partnership Council with PM Modi.
PM Modi hails Saudi Arabia's economic growth
Speaking at the meeting, PM Modi said that the partnership between India and Saudi Arabia will give an impetus to digital connectivity. He also talked about the historic economic corridor between India, West Asia and Europe. "Yesterday (September 10), we took a decision to start a historic economic corridor between India, West Asia and Europe. This corridor will not only connect two countries but also help in providing economic growth, and digital connectivity between Asia, West Asia and Europe. Under your leadership and vision 2030, Saudi Arabia has seen tremendous economic growth..." PM Modi added.
PM Modi stresses on mutual cooperation
PM Modi further said that Saudi Arabia is one of India's most important strategic partners. As two large and fast-growing economies of the world, their mutual cooperation is important for peace and stability in the entire region, he added.
"In our talks, we have identified several initiatives to take our partnership to the next level. Today's talks will provide new energy and direction to our relations. This will provide us inspiration to work together for the welfare of humanity," the PM said.
Saudi Prince lauds Economic Corridor
Meanwhile, the Saudi Crown Prince asserted that there was no disagreement at all during the history of the India-Saudi Arabia relationship but there is cooperation to build the future of our country and create opportunities. "Today we are working on future opportunities...I congratulate you on the management of the G20 Summit and the initiatives achieved, including the Economic Corridor linking the Middle East, India and Europe which requires that we work diligently in order to create it into reality...," he added.
Formal reception at Rastrapati Bhawan
Ahead of the meeting, the Saudi Crown Prince attended a ceremonial reception at Rashtrapati Bhavan. He also met President Droupadi Murmu, PM Modi and other ministers during the event. Mohammed bin Salman is anticipated to sign the minutes of the first meeting of the India-Saudi Strategic Partnership Council at the Hyderabad House around noon after his meeting with the Prime Minister.
"I am very glad to be here in India. I want to congratulate India for the G20 Summit...A lot of announcements have been made that will benefit G20 countries and the world. We will work together to create a great future for both countries," Mohammed bin Salman said.
Agenda of the meeting
The two leaders reviewed the progress made under the two Ministerial Committees of the Strategic Partnership Council i.e.the Committee on Political, Security, Social and Cultural Cooperation and the Committee on Economy and Investments Cooperation, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said in a statement. They will discuss all aspects of bilateral relations, including political, security, defence, trade and economic, cultural and people-to-people ties. Both the leaders will also discuss the regional and international issues of mutual interest, the statement said.
After concluding all these, the Saudi Arabian PM will meet President Droupadi Murmu at the Rashtrapati Bhawan around 6:30 pm before departing from New Delhi around 8:30 pm.
Saudi Crown Prince's 2nd state visit to India
The Saudi Crown Prince had earlier come to India on a state visit in February 2019 and this is his second state visit. He is accompanied by a high-level delegation, including ministers and senior officials. This visit follows the visit of Prime Minister Modi to Saudi Arabia in October 2019 during which the two countries established the Strategic Partnership Council, a bilateral mechanism.
India Saudi-Arabia relations
It should be mentioned here that India and Saudi Arabia have historically close and friendly relations with extensive people-to-people contacts. The trade between both countries reached an all-time high of USD 52.75 billion in 2022-23. India is Saudi Arabia's second-largest trading partner whereas Saudi Arabia is India's fourth-largest trading partner. Both countries also have a strong partnership in the area of energy.
(With inputs from agencies)
ALSO READ: India-Middle East-Europe 'historic' economic corridor announced at G20 Summit | What you should know