Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia for a 2 Day Diplomatic Visit

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi has landed in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia to embark on a 2 Day Diplomatic Visit that will be beneficial in strengthening the bond between India and the Kingdom. PM Modi was invited by the Crown Prince and Prime Minister Mohammed Bin Salman, his third visit to the Kingdom and the first visit to Jeddah, the commercial capital of Saudi Arabia. 

The visit is a part of the ongoing high level diplomatic engagements between India and Saudi Arabia from the Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman’s visit for the G20 Summit in 2023 held in India. The Indian Prime Minister’s visit to the coast of Red Sea is packed with an agenda from meeting the Crown Prince, diplomatic conversation about the countries’ bilateral ties and visiting Indian Factory Workers. 

PM Modi and Saudi Arabia Prime Minister will co-chair the second meeting of India – Saudi Arabia Strategic Partnership Council along with anticipated Memorandums of Understanding (MoUs) will be discussed and signed by the visiting Prime Minister during this visit. According to Indian Ambassador Suhel Ajaz Khan, a large number of Memorandums of Understanding (MoUs) are expected to be signed, with key discussions centred on strengthening economic ties, reinforcing defence cooperation and addressing regional political challenges.

Prime Minister Modi was honored with Saudi Royal Fighter Planes Escorting his air vehicle as it entered the Saudi Airspace. “India deeply values its long and historic ties with Saudi Arabia that have acquired strategic depth and momentum in recent years,” said Modi in a statement released by his office.

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India and Saudi Arabia have a mutually benefiting relationship as top-five trading partners, with about $43 billion in flows in 2023-2024, reports Bloomberg. The visit will also be covering discussions on trade, defence and energy in the time of Trump’s rattling tariff policies across the globe. PM Modi will also be open to discuss the Crown Prince’s intention on investing $100 billion in India, as he decided in 2019. 

Modi also drew comparison in shared vision between Saudi Arabia’s ‘Saudi Vision 2030’ and India’s ‘Viksit Bharat 2047’ (Developed India 2047 Initiative), during his special interview sitdown with Arab News. 

During this 2 Day Visit to Jeddah, the leaders are expected to sign multiple MoUs of trade, energy. On speaking of the agenda of this visit, Mr. Vikram Mishri, the Foreign Secretary of India said, “We are looking at infusing an even more strategic outlook in the energy partnership between the two countries,” in a briefing on April 19.

The Oil trade between the countries will also be a focus of discussion as the Aramco Crude signing with India’s Reliance Industries Ltd didn’t flourish much as the partnership fell apart. Signing an MoU on Oil trade will be a long term investment. 

PM Modi’s visit is his first one after six years to Saudi Arabia and the first PM visit from India to Jeddah in over four decades. Marked by such significance, the visit is also expected to bore improvements and investments in areas including renewable energy, healthcare, tourism and entertainment might also be on cards for discussion.