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. Thank Abdulmajeed Al Smari, Deputy Minister for Protocol Affairs for the warm reception." During his visit to Riyadh, he is also expected 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.
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