‘New Milestone’: PM Modi Holds Talks With Crown Prince Sheikh Khaled To Strengthen India-UAE

Prime Minister Narendra Modi met the Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi, Sheikh Khaled bin Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan here on Monday and discussed ways to boost bilateral ties between India and the UAE. The Abu Dhabi Crown Prince, who is on a two-day maiden visit, held talks on the entire spectrum of bilateral relations with PM Modi.

“A warm welcome for a close friend. PM Narendra Modi received HH Sheikh Khaled bin Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi at Hyderabad House. Discussions on the entire spectrum of India-UEA bilateral relations and future areas of cooperation lie ahead,” Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said.

‘Historic relationship’

On Sunday, the Crown Prince was received by the Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal at the airport following which he was accorded a ceremonial welcome. “A new milestone in a historic relationship. His Highness Sheikh Khaled bin Zayed Al Nahyan arrived in Delhi on his first official visit to India,” Jaiswal said in an earlier post on ‘X’. “Warmly received by @CimGOI @piyushgoyal and accorded a ceremonial welcome,” he said.

Business Forum

The Crown Prince is accompanied by several ministers from the UAE government and a business delegation. After concluding the Delhi leg of his visit, Al Nahyan will travel to Mumbai to participate in a business forum. Top business leaders from both countries will participate in the forum on Tuesday.

The visit of Al Nahyan will further reinforce strong ties between India and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and open avenues for partnership in new and emerging areas, the MEA said. Following the landmark visit of Modi to the UAE in August 2015, bilateral relations between the two countries were elevated to a Comprehensive Strategic Partnership.

Comprehensive Economic Partnership

Both countries signed a Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) in February 2022 and a Local Currency Settlement (LCS) System in July 2023 to promote the use of Indian Rupee and AED (United Arab Emirates Dirham) for cross-border transactions.

The two countries are among each other’s top trading partners with a bilateral trade of about USD 85 billion in 2022-23, according to official data. The UAE is also among the top four investors in India in terms of foreign direct investments in 2022-23.

About 3.5 million strong and vibrant Indian community forms the largest expatriate group in the UAE. The UAE was invited as a special invitee for G20 during India’s Presidency of the grouping. In February 2023, the India-UAE-France (UFI) trilateral was formally launched. With India’s active support, the UAE joined SCO as a dialogue partner in May 2023.