External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar met with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman Al Saud in Jeddah on Sunday and briefed him on bilateral relations between the two countries.
In a tweet, Jaishankar wrote: “Honored to visit HRH Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman in Jeddah this evening. Conveyed warm greetings from Prime Minister @narendramodi. Briefed him on the progress of our bilateral relations. ties.”
Earlier in the day, Jaishankar met with Saudi Foreign Minister Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud and co-chaired the Political, Security, Social and Cultural (PSSC) Committee of the Indo-Saudi Partnership Council.
“Warm and productive meeting with Saudi Foreign Minister, H.H. Prince @FaisalbinFarhan this afternoon. Co-chaired the Political, Security, Social and Cultural Committee of the Indo-Saudi Partnership Council,” Jaishankar tweeted.
Jaishankar arrived for a two-day visit to Saudi Arabia from Saturday, his first trip to the Kingdom as India’s external minister.
“The two ministers will undertake a comprehensive review of the entire bilateral relationship and discuss progress made under the PSSC Committee’s four joint working groups, namely Political and Consular, Legal and Security, Social and Cultural and Joint Committee. defense cooperation”, the MEA had said earlier.
Meetings of these groups and senior officials (at the level of secretaries) have been held over the past few months, the statement added.
“The two sides will also discuss regional and international issues of mutual concern, including their cooperation in the United Nations, the Group of Twenty (G20) and the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC),” the MEA said.
During the visit, Jaishankar will also meet with other Saudi dignitaries as well as the Secretary General of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), Nayef Falah Mubarak Al-Hajraf.
The two sides will review bilateral relations and discuss ways to strengthen them. The Minister will also interact with the Indian community in Saudi Arabia.
Relations between India and Saudi Arabia have grown considerably over the past few years, especially in the areas of politics, security, energy, trade, investment, health, food security, culture and defence.
Senior leaders from both countries have remained in close contact even during the Covid-19 pandemic.
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