India Strengthens Ties With Saudi Arabia and UAE

India is intensifying its diplomatic outreach across West Asia through a series of high-level engagements with Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates. S. Jaishankar, India's External Affairs Minister, is hosting UAE Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan in Mumbai for a two-day official visit. The ministers are scheduled to hold talks on trade, energy, and defense, while reviewing the Comprehensive Strategic Partnership and discussing regional stability following recent attacks in Saudi Arabia.

These talks follow a previous meeting between Jaishankar and Sheikh Abdullah in Abu Dhabi during a Raisina Dialogue Middle East panel, where they discussed global power shifts and adaptive diplomacy.

Simultaneously, Indian officials are strengthening ties with Saudi Arabia. On October 19, Consul General Fahad Suri met with Prince Saud bin Nahar bin Saud bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, the Deputy Governor of the Madinah Region, to discuss bilateral cooperation and the Indian community. This follows efforts by Ambassador Vipul to coordinate multilateral cooperation with Saudi Deputy Minister Abdulrahman Al-Rassi and review preparations for Haj 2027 with Vice Minister Abdulfattah bin Suleiman Al-Mashat. These preparations included inspections of the Haramain High Speed Railway Station and the Jeddah Airport Haj Terminal to support over 100,000 Indian pilgrims.