PM Modi To Embark On Two-Day Visit To Saudi Arabia Today; Focus On Energy, Finance

Modi is scheduled to reach Riyadh on Monday night. A few Saudi ministers are slated to meet the visiting dignitary, the following day

PTI FILE

New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi will embark on his two-day trip to Saudi Arabia on Monday, amid tensions with Pakistan over its refusal of granting airspace permission for Modi’s flight. The aim of PM’s Saudi visit will be to boost bilateral ties between the two countries in key sectors including energy and finance. Modi is scheduled to reach Riyadh on Monday night. A few Saudi ministers are slated to meet the visiting dignitary, the following day. Modi is also scheduled to address the FII plenary session on Tuesday. He will leave for New Delhi on the same night. Modi is paying a visit to the Kingdom at the invitation of Saudi King Salman Bin Abdulaziz Al Saud. The Prime Minister will hold talks with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman and launch the RuPay card in the country during the two-day visit. He will also attend the third session of the Future Investment Initiative (FII) Forum in Riyadh, where he will deliver the keynote address. The FII is also known as the 'Davos in the Desert' which has been hosted by Riyadh since 2017 to project the Kingdom as a potential investment hub in the region. "There will also be a bilateral segment to his visit where Prime Minister Modi will meet Mohammed Bin Salman Al Saud, Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia, and hold bilateral talks with him," TS Tirumurti, Secretary (Economic Affairs), Ministry of External Affairs, had told reporters on Thursday. "An agreement on the Strategic Partnership Council will also be signed. There will also be separate delegation-level talks with the Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia," he added. The two countries are expected to hold joint naval exercises in December this year. Modi's visit to Saudi Arabia comes amid heightened tensions between India and Pakistan following New Delhi's decision to revoke Article 370 that granted special powers to Jammu and Kashmir. Islamabad has unilaterally downgraded bilateral ties and has been attempting to internationalise the Kashmir issue but to no avail. Pakistan denies use of its airspace to PM Modi Pakistan on Sunday said it has denied India's request to allow Prime Minister Narendra Modi's VVIP flight to use its airspace for his upcoming visit to Saudi Arabia, citing the alleged human rights violations in Jammu and Kashmir. In a statement, Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi said Pakistan has decided not to allow Prime Minister Modi to use the country's airspace, state-run Radio Pakistan reported. He said the decision has been taken in context of the "black day" and in view of the alleged human rights violations in Jammu and Kashmir, it added.