Crown Prince Of Abu Dhabi's Landmark Visit To India Aims To Boost Bilateral Ties

His Highness Sheikh Khaled bin Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Crown of Abu Dhabi, has arrived in New Delhi for an official visit to India. Upon arrival at the airport, he was welcomed by Piyush Goyal, India's Minister of Commerce and Industry, with a traditional red-carpet reception. The national anthems of both the UAE and India were played during the ceremony.

Sheikh Khaled reviewed a ceremonial guard of honour and witnessed a traditional cultural performance that showcased India's rich heritage. He was greeted by several senior Indian government officials, as well as Dr Thani bin Ahmed Al Zeyoudi, UAE Minister of State for Foreign Trade, and Abdulnasser Jamal Alshaali, Ambassador of the UAE to India.

Strengthening Economic Ties

During his visit, Sheikh Khaled will engage in discussions with senior Indian officials to explore opportunities for further cooperation across key economic sectors. These discussions aim to build on significant milestones already achieved for the mutual benefit of both countries and their people.

A UAE delegation is accompanying Sheikh Khaled on this visit. The delegation includes Dr Sultan Ahmed Al Jaber, Minister of Industry and Advanced Technologies; Reem Al Hashimy, Minister of State for International Cooperation; Mohamed Hassan Alsuwaidi, Minister of Investment; Khaldoon Khalifa Al Mubarak, Chairman of the Executive Affairs Authority; Ahmed Jasim Al Zaabi, Chairman of the Abu Dhabi Department of Economic Development; and Saif Saeed Ghobash, Secretary General of the Abu Dhabi Executive Council.

His Highness will also attend several events that reflect the economic and cultural bonds shared by the UAE and India. These activations are designed to highlight the strong relationship between the two nations.

The visit underscores the commitment to enhancing bilateral relations between the UAE and India. It aims to foster deeper ties in various sectors including trade, investment, and cultural exchange.

The visit marks a major stride in the ongoing development of UAE-India ties, which have become an international model of constructive cooperation, particularly in areas, such as economic and sustainable development, investment, trade, climate action, and promoting global stability and peace.

The UAE-India relations draw strength and momentum from a long history of bilateral meetings between the leaders of both nations, beginning in January 1975 when the UAE's Founding Father, the late Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan, made a historic visit to India.

During this visit, he met with the then-President of India, Fakhruddin Ali Ahmed, and the then-Prime Minister, Indira Gandhi. The visit saw the signing of the Cultural Agreement between the UAE and the Republic of India, which serves as the primary framework for strengthening cultural ties between their peoples.

UAE-India ties reached new heights on February 18, 2022, with the launch of a Joint Vision Statement during a virtual meeting attended by President His Highness Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan and Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The two sides agreed to enhance their comprehensive strategic partnership, focusing on key areas such as the economy, culture, energy, climate action, renewable energy, technology and skills, food security and health, education, international cooperation, and defence and security.

Additionally, the UAE-India Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) was signed, seeking to bolster investment and trade flows based on reduced tariffs and greater regulatory efficiency. The CEPA stands to boost bilateral non-oil trade to US$100 billion by 2030.

By 2024, the UAE and India had made significant progress in maintaining their strong ties, holding 14 rounds of their Joint Committee, the most recent of which took place on September 1, 2022 in Abu Dhabi. In addition, three sessions of the Strategic Dialogue between the two countries have been held, with the latest taking place on September 2, 2022 in Abu Dhabi, chaired by Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs, and Dr. Subrahmanyam Jaishankar, Minister of External Affairs of the Republic of India.