External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar will leave here on Sunday on a week-long three-nation tour of Saudi Arabia, Germany and Switzerland to enhance bilateral ties and explore opportunities for new partnerships with these countries.
He will travel to Riyadh in Saudi Arabia, on 8-9 September to attend the First India-Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) Foreign Ministers’ Meeting. During the visit, he is also expected to hold bilateral meetings with the foreign ministers from GCC member countries.
India and the GCC enjoy a deep and multifaceted relationship, in areas including political, trade and 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.
On the second leg of the visit, Jaishankar will travel to Berlin for a two-day visit on 10-11 September. This will be his third bilateral visit to Berlin. Both 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 the visit, he will meet the German Federal Foreign Minister as well as the leadership and other ministers from the German government to review the entire gamut of bilateral relations between India and Germany.
The EAM will thereafter travel to Geneva for an official visit from 12-13 September. Geneva is home to a large number of UN bodies and international organisations. During the visit, the minister will meet with heads and representatives of international organisations with whom India is actively engaged.