PM Modi to embark on 2-day Saudi Arabia visit
Amid volatile global economic and security situation, Prime Minister Narendra Modi will embark on a key two-day visit to Saudi Arabia — the nation which is a leading voice in the Islamic world. With this visit, the two countries are likely to boost ties in several sectors, including energy, defence and regional security.
In a press conference on the Prime Minister’s visit, Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri was reflective of the substantive relationship between the two countries.
The PM will be travelling to Saudi Arabia from April 22 to 23. The PM’s engagements in the kingdom will be in Jeddah, where Misri said he will have a bilateral meeting with Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammad Bin Salman. The two leaders will also co-chair the second meeting of the strategic partnership council.
The two countries are also expected to sign several MoUs in sectors, including energy, with FS Misri saying that there could be a possible agreement on green hydrogen between the two countries. The PM will also visit a factory in Jeddah which employs Indians. The Indian community in Saudi Arabia is numbered at 2.7 million.
Misri also pointed to trade and diaspora ties with Saudi Arabia, while also referring to strong India-Saudi Arabia energy partnership.
The kingdom is India’s fifth largest trade partner and India is Saudi Arabia’s second largest trade partner. During FY 2023-24, India’s imports from Saudi Arabia reached US $31.42 billion and exports to Saudi Arabia were worth US $11.56 billion. Major commodities of export from India to Saudi Arabia include engineering goods, rice, petroleum products, chemicals, textiles, food products, ceramic tiles. whereas, major commodities of import for India from Saudi Arabia are crude oil, LPG, fertilisers, chemicals, plastic and products thereof etc.
The total Saudi investment in India, including that of PIF, other Saudi companies and Saudi backed Vision Fund, has been about $10 billion. Saudi Arabia remained India’s third largest crude and petroleum products sourcing destination for FY 2023-24. India imported 33.35 MMT of crude oil in FY 2023-24 from Saudi Arabia, accounting for 14.3 per cent of India’s total crude oil imports. In FY 2023-24, Saudi Arabia was the third largest LPG sourcing destination for India, accounting for 18.2 per cent of the total LPG imports of India for 2023-24.
Misri also called Saudi Arabia a “leading voice” in the Islamic world, which he said plays an important role in regional development.
On Houthi attacks in Western Indian Ocean, Misri said the issue would be a point of discussion between the two leaders, while pointing to the efforts of the Indian Navy ensuring safety of merchant ships in the region.
Misri also assured that the “progress hasn’t frozen on India-Middle East-Europe Economic Corridor (IMEC)” despite the conflicts. IMEC is a strategic multi-modal connectivity initiative launched through a memorandum of understanding (MoU) during the G20 Summit 2023 in New Delhi, whose signatories include India, US, Saudi Arabia, the UAE, France, Germany, Italy and the European Union. IMEC seeks to position itself as a viable alternative to China’s Belt and Road Initiative (BRI).
Meanwhile, Misri also slammed Pakistan for using Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) platform against “anti-India" rhetoric. OIC is the second-largest inter-governmental organisation after the UN and its general secretariat is based in Jeddah.
India