PM Modi meets UAE President Sheikh Mohamed in Abu Dhabi

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday had a brief visit to Abu Dhabi, where he had a meeting with Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, who took over as the new president of the United Arab Emirates.

Modi had a stopover in Abu Dhabi while returning to New Delhi after attending the G7 summit at Schloss Elmau in Germany. In a special gesture, Mohammed bin Zayed received the prime minister at the airport.

The visit of the prime minister to Abu Dhabi was significant as it was his first to an Arab country after the comment made by two now-suspended leaders of his Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) over Prophet Muhammad triggered outrage across West Asia. The UAE also condemned the comment by the two BJP leaders but took note of New Delhi’s clarification that the remarks had not reflected the views of the Government of India.

Modi and Mohammed bin Zayed have developed a personal rapport with each other over the past few years. Mohammed bin Zayed formally took over as the leader of the UAE after his half-brother Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan’s death following prolonged illness.

The prime minister conveyed to the new UAE president his personal condolences on the passing away of Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan.

The two leaders had a meeting and reviewed various aspects of the India-UAE comprehensive strategic partnership, which they carefully nurtured over the past few years. During a virtual summit in February this year, both leaders witnessed the signing of the Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement, which entered into force on May 1 last.

The CEPA is expected to further boost trade and investment between both countries. The bilateral trade in FY 2021-22 was about $ 72 billion. The UAE is India’s third largest trade partner and second-largest export destination. The UAE FDI in India has continuously increased over the past few years and currently stands at over $ 12 billion, according to a press release issued by the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) in New Delhi.

Modi and Mohammed bin Zayed expressed satisfaction that India and UAE continue to forge closer partnerships in the areas of trade, investment, energy including renewable energy, food security, health, defence, skills, education and culture. They noted that India-UAE had a strong energy partnership which was now acquiring a new focus on renewable energy.

The prime minister thanked the UAE president for taking “great care of 3.5 million Indian community in UAE”, especially during the Covid-19 pandemic. He invited Mohamed bin Zayed to visit India at an early date.