Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman Embarks on India State Visit After G20

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On Monday, Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman embarked on an official state visit to India following his participation in the G20 Summit over the weekend. The purpose of his visit is to assess and strengthen the bilateral relationship and collaboration between the two countries across various domains, including energy and security.

The de facto ruler of Saudi Arabia, who also serves as the prime minister, is scheduled to engage in discussions with Prime Minister Narendra Modi during his day-long visit.

In anticipation of Mohammed bin Salman's visit, Saud Al-Sati, the Saudi deputy minister for political and economic affairs, made a trip to New Delhi last month to oversee the preparations. Al-Sati, who previously served as the ambassador to India, held discussions with Ausaf Sayeed, the secretary responsible for overseas Indian affairs in the external affairs ministry, covering a wide range of topics related to bilateral relations.

The current Saudi ambassador, Saleh Eid Alhusseini, also had a meeting with India's external affairs minister, S Jaishankar, last Tuesday. Following the meeting, Jaishankar expressed his eagerness for the further advancement and enhancement of the India-Saudi Arabia relationship across all sectors through a tweet.

Back in June, Modi and Mohammed bin Salman held a phone conversation where they reviewed their countries' cooperation and explored opportunities to strengthen their ties in areas such as connectivity, energy, defense, trade, and investment. This interaction marked their first communication since China facilitated a reconciliation between Saudi Arabia and Iran.

Saudi Arabia has emerged as a significant partner for India in the West Asian region, particularly in the fields of defense, security, and energy. Additionally, Saudi Arabia is home to a substantial Indian expatriate community of 2.6 million individuals, representing one of the largest expatriate populations in the region.

Mohammed bin Salman's previous visit to India took place in February 2019, which was followed by Prime Minister Modi's visit to Saudi Arabia in October of the same year. During that visit, the two nations established the Strategic Partnership Council, consisting of two committees: one focusing on political, security, social, and cultural aspects, led by the foreign ministers, and the other concentrating on economic and investment matters, co-chaired by the Indian commerce minister and the Saudi energy minister.