Prime Minister Narendra Modi's recent Saudi visit was a milestone in further cementing the bilateral relationship between India and the kingdom. In his visit, PM Modi emphasized India's vision of developing a strong partnership with Saudi Arabia based on mutual trust, respect, and cooperation.
The bilateral relationship between the two countries has seen a dramatic change over the years, with both countries realizing the huge scope for cooperation in various fields. Saudi Arabia, being one of the biggest economies in West Asia, presents huge opportunities for India in the areas of trade, investment, energy, defense, and security.
One of the highlights of PM Modi's tour was the talk of raising economic cooperation between the two countries. India and Saudi Arabia have ambitious goals of doubling their bilateral trade in the near future. For this purpose, both nations are seeking new areas of collaboration in the form of investments in infrastructure, agriculture, and the pharmaceutical sector.
The energy sector is another important sector of cooperation between India and Saudi Arabia. Being one of the largest crude oil importers, India is interested in enhancing its energy relationship with Saudi Arabia, which is one of the world's top oil producers. Both nations are engaged in diversifying their energy partnership, including renewable energy.
Defense and security cooperation is also a critical component of the India-Saudi Arabia relationship. Both countries have been having joint military exercises and defense dialogues to increase their security cooperation. The visit involved talks about further consolidating defense relations, including co-production of defense equipment and expanding maritime security cooperation.
The visit of PM Modi to Saudi Arabia was a major move in strengthening the relationship between the two countries. The understandings and agreements forged during the visit are likely to provide a major impetus to India-Saudi Arabia relations, leading to an enhanced and stronger partnership. While both nations persevere in working together, their cooperation is certain to have a beneficial effect on regional and global concerns, developing peace, stability, and prosperity within the region.