PM Modi to visit Saudi Arabia on April 22 in a renewed move to strengthen ties

RIYADH: Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi will visit Saudi Arabia on April 22 to hold wide-ranging talks with Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman, Saudi Prime Minister, to boost bilateral relations and to widen strategic ties. Modi’s two-day visit will focus on areas of trade, investment, energy, and defense cooperation besides a range of regional and international issues of common concerns.

“Modi is likely to travel to Saudi Arabia later this month, on his first visit to the Gulf nation in about four years. Modi will be in Saudi Arabia shortly after a planned visit by US National Security Adviser Mike Waltz to India,” said a report in a section of the Indian press. “Modi will be staying for two days on April 22 and 23 in the Kingdom, possibly in the Red Sea coast city of Jeddah during this trip,” said a diplomatic source, here Wednesday.

“The details of Prime Minister Modi’s engagements and meeting during his stay in Saudi Arabia are being worked out by the two sides now,” he added. An important aspect of Indo-Saudi bilateral engagement is growing defense cooperation, underscored by joint exercises and military exchanges. Therefore, the focus will be on defense and security, trade and investments, and visa-related matters.

The deepening defense relationship is evident from the joint naval exercises and increasing military exchanges. The upcoming third edition of the Al-Mohed Al Hindi naval exercise reflects this growing relationship. The first such exercise was organized in August 2021, followed by another exercise in May 2023. These exercises provide the Indian Navy with strategic leverage, in the region stretching from the Strait of Hormuz to the Strait of Malacca.

Nonetheless, these military exercises indicate the growing recognition of New Delhi as a trusted defense partner. In addition to these developments, the state-run Munitions Indian Limited (MIL) endorsed a deal worth $225 million to supply artillery ammunition, which was followed by another $80 million deal for artillery ammunition last year. In fact, ties with the Kingdom have also expanded through joint exercises across domains.

The first joint land force exercise Sada Tanseeq took place in Rajasthan in early 2024. The focus was to enable the Indian and Saudi armies to share best practices in tactics, techniques, and procedures. In December 2020 General MM Naravane, who was then the Chief of Indian Army Staff, made a historic visit to Saudi Arabia, marking the first-ever visit by the head of the 1.3 million-strong Indian Army to the Kingdom.

During Prime Minister Modi’s visit, the two sides are also expected to discuss the regional security scenario, and the planned India-Middle East-Europe Economic Corridor (IMEC), a PTI report said, quoting people familiar with the matter. The visit will also be an opportunity for both sides to exchange views on regional issues including the situation in Gaza and efforts to end the Israel-Hamas conflict.

To this end, it is important to note that the relations between Saudi Arabia and India have been progressively growing in the last few years. Today, the Kingdom has a 2.6 million-strong Indian community.  Bilateral trade has grown steadily with India ranking as the second largest trade partner of Saudi Arabia, while the Kingdom is the fifth largest trading partner of New Delhi. In 2023-24, the two-way trade stood at $43.3 billion, with Indian exports at $11.56 billion and imports at $31.42 billion.

Indian investments in the Kingdom have also increased in recent years, reaching a cumulative figure of  $3 billion.  The visit of Prime Minister Modi is expected to be an opportunity for the two sides to take stock of commercial relations. Interestingly, the Indian exports have increased by 7.8% to almost $12 billion during the last financial year.

India is further diversifying its exports and plays a key role in Saudi Arabia’s food security, with rice exports alone worth about $1 billion annually. During Prime Minister Modi’s visit to Saudi Arabia in 2019, both countries emphasized the importance of securing waterways in the Indian Ocean and the Gulf. The upcoming visit of Modi will further widen this to include cybersecurity, combating transnational crimes, and ensuring the freedom of navigation.

In November last year, Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan visited India. The visit saw both sides discussing opportunities to strengthen their strategic partnership, especially in the areas of trade, investment, energy, defense, security, and culture. In fact, the historic visit of the late King Abdullah bin Abdulaziz to India in January 2006 was a watershed moment that resulted in the signing of the ‘Delhi Declaration’.

It was followed later by the ‘Riyadh Declaration’ in 2010 during the visit of the then Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh to the Kingdom, which elevated the relations to a strategic partnership. Also, Prime Minister Modi’s visit to Riyadh in April 2016 and 2019 were seen as significant milestones in India-Saudi Arabia ties and played a crucial role in strengthening the ties between the two nations.

— INDIA NEWS STREAM