S Jaishankar's Key Gulf Meet In Saudi Amid India's Big Middle East Push

External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar arrived in Saudi Arabia today to take part in the First India-Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) Foreign Ministers' Meeting. During the visit, he is also expected to hold bilateral meetings with Foreign Ministers from GCC member countries, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said.

The Gulf Cooperation Council is a political and economic union of six countries in the Gulf region- Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates (UAE), Bahrain, Qatar, Kuwait and Oman.

Arrived in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia to take part in the First India - Gulf Cooperation Council Foreign Ministers' Meeting.

Thank Abdulmajeed Al Smari, Deputy Minister for Protocol Affairs for the warm reception. pic.twitter.com/cZBtBIYBdW — Dr. S. Jaishankar (@DrSJaishankar) September 8, 2024

"India and the GCC enjoy a deep and multifaceted relationship, in areas including political, trade & investment, energy cooperation, cultural and people - to - people ties. The GCC region has emerged as a major trading partner for India and is home to a large Indian expatriate community, numbering around 8.9 million. The Foreign Ministers meeting will be an opportunity to review and deepen institutional cooperation between India and the GCC across various sectors," the MEA said.

Mr Jaishankar will thereafter visit Berlin, Germany, for a two-day trip from September 10 to 11. This will be his third visit as Minister to Berlin. "Both India and Germany share a robust Strategic Partnership and Germany is one of India's prominent trading partners and among the largest Foreign Direct Investors," the MEA said.

He will also travel to Geneva, Switzerland for an official visit from September 12 to 13. During the visit, he will meet heads and representatives of international organisations with whom India is actively engaged.

Notably, the Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi, Sheikh Khaled bin Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, will come to India for a two-day official visit from September 9 to 10. The Crown Prince will meet Prime Minister Narendra Modi to hold discussions on bilateral cooperation.

Apart from his meeting with PM Modi, the Crown Prince will also call on President Droupadi Murmu.

In recent years, India and the UAE have expanded their ties by elevating to a Comprehensive Strategic Partnership. Both countries signed a Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement in February 2022 and a Local Currency Settlement System in July 2023 to promote the use of Indian Rupee and AED (United Arab Emirates Dirham) for cross-border transactions.

India is the UAE's second -largest trading partner, while the UAE is India's largest trading partner in the Arab world. The total trade between the two countries is projected to reach USD 100 billion by the end of the decade.