Jaishankar arrives in Riyadh to attend India-GCC Foreign Ministers' Meeting

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Updated Sep 08 2024 | 9:20 AM IST External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on Sunday arrived in Saudi Arabia's capital, Riyadh, to attend
the First India-Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) Foreign Ministers' Meeting. Saudi Arabia's Deputy Minister for Protocol Affairs,
Abdulmajeed Al Smari, welcomed Jaishankar in Riyadh
Jaishankar is on a two-day visit to Saudi Arabia from September 8-9. Upon arrival in Riyadh, Jaishankar, in a post on X stated, "Arrived
in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia to take part in the First India - Gulf Cooperation Council Foreign Ministers' Meeting
to hold bilateral meetings with foreign ministers from GCC member countries, according to a Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) release. In
its release, the MEA stated, "India and the GCC enjoy a deep and multifaceted relationship, in areas including political, trade -
investment, energy cooperation, cultural and people-to-people ties." "The GCC region has emerged as a major trading partner for India and
is home to a large Indian expatriate community, numbering around 8.9 million
The Foreign Ministers meeting will be an opportunity to review and deepen institutional cooperation between India and the GCC across various
sectors," it added. After concluding his visit to Riyadh, Jaishankar is scheduled to travel to Germany for a two-day visit from September
10-11
This will be his first bilateral visit to Berlin. India and Germany share a robust strategic partnership, and Germany is one of India's
prominent trading partners and among the largest foreign direct investors. During his visit, EAM Jaishankar will meet the German Federal
Foreign Minister as well as the leadership and other ministers from the German government with an objective to review the entire gamut of
bilateral relations between India and Germany, according to the MEA release. The External Affairs Minister will thereafter travel to
Geneva, Switzerland, for an official visit from September 12-13. Notably, Geneva is home to a large number of United Nations bodies and
international organisations, the release said
During the visit, the External Affairs Minister will meet with heads and representatives of international organisations with whom India is
actively engaged, the release said. During the visit, Jaishankar will also meet Switzerland's counterpart to review the close
partnership between the two nations and explore avenues to enhance the bilateral relationship further.(Only the headline and picture of this
report may have been reworked by the Business Standard staff; the rest of the content is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)First
Published: Sep 08 2024 | 9:20 AMIST