PM Modi met Saudi King Salman bin Abdulaziz and Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman in Riyadh.
Highlights
- PM met Saudi King and Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman in Riyadh
- Crown Prince hosted PM for dinner, the king hosted him for lunch
- PM said India will invest $100 billion in oil and gas infrastructure
Prime Minister Narendra Modi met Saudi King Salman bin Abdulaziz and the powerful Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman in Riyadh on Tuesday. Speaking at a high-profile investment summit, PM Modi said India will invest a $100 billion in oil and gas infrastructure to meet energy needs of an economy that is being targeted to nearly double in five years. He also sought investment from the oil-rich Saudi Arabia and other nations to boost supplies. The Prime Minister also met key Saudi ministers, including the country's energy minister, in the backdrop of the two nations' decision to develop an oil refinery in Maharashtra's Raigarh with investment from Saudi oil giant Aramco.
Here are top 10 points on PM Modi's visit to Saudi Arabia:
"It is always a delight to meet His Royal Highness Prince Mohammed bin Salman bin Abdulaziz. His vision for Saudi Arabia is remarkable. We had an extensive meeting during which we discussed numerous issues. Stronger friendship between our nations augurs well for our people," PM Modi tweeted after the Crown Prince hosted him for dinner.
During PM Modi's talks with King Salman bin Abdulaziz and the Crown Prince, a Strategic Partnership Council was established for New Delhi and Riyadh to coordinate on important issues.
King Salman bin Abdulaziz hosted PM Modi for lunch after a short meeting, during which the two leaders exchanged views on working closely to strengthen the bilateral ties. The two leaders condemned terrorism in all its forms, and agreed to step up bilateral security cooperation.
India and Saudi Arabia signed memorandum of understanding (MoU) to roll out RuPay card in the Kingdom - making Saudi Arabia the third country in the Persian Gulf after the UAE and Bahrain to introduce India's digital payment system. Twelve MoUs were signed between the two countries in defence industries collaboration, renewable energy, security cooperation and civil aviation sectors.
He delivered a keynote address at the Future Investment Initiative (FII), dubbed as ''Davos in the desert'', where he pressed for the United Nations reforms while expressing regret over some "powerful" countries using the global body as a "tool" rather than an "institution" to resolve conflicts.
"India became a good destination for foreign investment," PM Modi said, outlining big pluses like infrastructure growth and skill development. "India is the third biggest start-up ecosystem. There has been a lot of investment, from food delivery, hospitality, tourism and medical treatment. I request world investors to take advantage of it," he said.
India's ties with Saudi Arabia have been on an upswing over the last few years. Last month, Saudi Arabia said that it was looking at investing $100 billion in India in areas of energy, refining, petrochemicals, infrastructure, agriculture, minerals and mining.
In 2017-18, India's bilateral trade with Saudi Arabia was at $27.48 billion, making Saudi Arabia its fourth largest trading partner.
This is PM Modi's second visit to the Gulf Kingdom. In 2016, during his first visit, he was given the highest civilian award of Saudi Arabia by King Salman. Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman visited India in February 2019.
India, the world's third-largest oil consumer, imports 83 per cent of it. Saudi Arabia is its second-largest supplier after Iraq. It sold 40.33 million tonnes of crude oil to India in 2018-19 fiscal, when the country had imported 207.3 million tonnes of oil.
Post a comment