Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Haitham bin Tarik, the Sultan of Oman, held delegation-level talks at Hyderabad House in the national capital on Saturday, where they adopted a new 'India-Oman joint vision, a partnership for future' focusing on ten essential areas.
The Sultan arrived on his maiden visit to India on December 15 and was accorded a ceremonial reception in the Rashtrapati Bhawan in New Delhi on Saturday by President Droupadi Murmu and PM Modi. Sultan Haitham bin Tarik then inspected a Guard of Honour by the combined defence services.
"Today, we are adopting a new India-Oman joint vision, a partnership for the future. In this joint vision, concrete action points have been agreed upon in ten different areas. I am confident that the joint vision will give a new and modern shape to our partnership," said PM Modi at the meeting of the joint delegation.
"I am happy that the discussion on the CEPA agreement is going on and two rounds of discussion have been successfully completed, in which many important issues have been agreed upon. I hope that we will soon be able to sign this agreement which will add a new dimension to our economic cooperation," he added.
He also termed the Sultan's maiden visit to India as 'historic' and congratulated Oman for qualifying for the T20I cricket world cup to be co-hosted by the West Indies and the US next year. External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar, Union Minister of Commerce & Industry, Piyush Goyal, Union Minister of State V Muraleedhraran, and Foreign Secretary Vinay Kwatra were also present in the meeting.
Bilateral talks between PM Modi and Oman Sultan
This came after both leaders held bilateral talks at the same venue with a focus on future collaboration between the two countries, including in areas of political, security, defence, trade, economic, cultural and people to people ties.
"Giving a boost to India-Oman Strategic Partnership! PM @narendramodi warmly received His Majesty Sultan Haitham bin Tarik of Oman at Hyderabad House, setting the stage for bilateral discussions. Agenda includes taking stock of bilateral ties and charting pathways for the future collaboration between the two countries," said Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) spokesperson Arindam Bagchi.
PM Modi will also host a luncheon in Sultan Haitham Bin Tarik's honour later on Saturday. Oman Sultan also visited the National Gallery of Modern Art in Delhi. Bagchi earlier said that the Sultan's visit would further boost the friendship and cooperation between the two nations.
Significantly, India and Oman share a long-standing friendship rooted in historical, cultural, and economic ties. Furthermore, people-to-people contact between India and Oman can be traced back 5,000 years. The diplomatic relations between the two countries were established in 1955 and were upgraded to a strategic partnership in 2008.
(with inputs from ANI)
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