Riyadh: Indian External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj on Wednesday thanked Saudi Arabia for increasing India's quota for Islam's most holy pilgrimage, the Haj.
At the inaugural ceremony of the Saudi national and cultural festival Al Janadriyah, where India has been given guest of honour country status this year, Ms Sushma Swaraj said "a large number of my Muslim brothers and sisters from India visit Saudi Arabia every year for Haj and Umrah pilgrimage.
"Once again I thank Your Majesty for increasing the Haj quota for India in 2017 and also for the special arrangements and care given to the pilgrims," she said.
The decision by Riyadh came after Union Minority Affairs Minister Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi signed a bilateral annual agreement for Haj 2018 with Saudi Minister for Haj and Umrah Mohammad Saleh bin Taher Benten.
Ms Sushma Swaraj said that India's participation at the Al Janadriyah Festival "provided an opportunity to showcase our strong bilateral relationship".
"The Pavilion with the theme 'Saudi ka dost Bharat' is a big draw at Janadriyah," External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Rveesh Kumar tweeted.
Prior to that, Ms Sushma Swaraj met her Saudi counterpart Adel Jubeir and discussed deepening of bilateral ties.
"The two Foreign Ministers also discussed the regional and global situation," the spokesperson said.
Saudi Arabia is the fourth-largest trading partner for India with bilateral trade exceeding $25 billion in 2016-17.
As India's largest supplier of crude oil, Saudi Arabia accounts for about 20 per cent of the total annual imports.
The Gulf nation is also home to around 3.2 million expatriate Indians, that includes a growing number of professionals, including doctors, software engineers and oil technologists.
Ms Sushma Swaraj arrived here on Tuesday on a three-day visit in what is her first official visit to this Gulf kingdom.
At the inaugural ceremony of the Saudi national and cultural festival Al Janadriyah, where India has been given guest of honour country status this year, Ms Sushma Swaraj said "a large number of my Muslim brothers and sisters from India visit Saudi Arabia every year for Haj and Umrah pilgrimage.
"Once again I thank Your Majesty for increasing the Haj quota for India in 2017 and also for the special arrangements and care given to the pilgrims," she said.
The decision by Riyadh came after Union Minority Affairs Minister Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi signed a bilateral annual agreement for Haj 2018 with Saudi Minister for Haj and Umrah Mohammad Saleh bin Taher Benten.
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Ms Sushma Swaraj said that India's participation at the Al Janadriyah Festival "provided an opportunity to showcase our strong bilateral relationship".
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"The Pavilion with the theme 'Saudi ka dost Bharat' is a big draw at Janadriyah," External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Rveesh Kumar tweeted.
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Prior to that, Ms Sushma Swaraj met her Saudi counterpart Adel Jubeir and discussed deepening of bilateral ties.
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"The two Foreign Ministers also discussed the regional and global situation," the spokesperson said.
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Saudi Arabia is the fourth-largest trading partner for India with bilateral trade exceeding $25 billion in 2016-17.
As India's largest supplier of crude oil, Saudi Arabia accounts for about 20 per cent of the total annual imports.
The Gulf nation is also home to around 3.2 million expatriate Indians, that includes a growing number of professionals, including doctors, software engineers and oil technologists.
Ms Sushma Swaraj arrived here on Tuesday on a three-day visit in what is her first official visit to this Gulf kingdom.
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