India & Saudi Could Sign Energy Cooperation Deal

India and Saudi Arabia will be signing a comprehensive energy partnership following talks between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman today, sources have told Business Today. Mohammed bin Salman arrived in New Delhi on Saturday to attend the 18th G20 summit, which concluded yesterday. He will, however, continue his stay in New Delhi for a state visit. Today, Mohammed bin Salman will call on Indian President Droupadi Murmu, according to a statement by the Indian foreign ministry. He will hold a bilateral meeting with Prime Minister Modi, and both leaders will also co-chair the First Leaders’ Meeting of the Strategic Partnership Council. This council was established following Modi’s visit to Saudi Arabia in October 2019. “They will review the progress made under the two ministerial committees of the Strategic Partnership Council, ie, the Committee on Political, Security, Social and Cultural Cooperation and the Committee on Economy and Investments Cooperation,” the statement added.

During the bilateral meeting, Mohammed bin Salman and Modi will discuss all aspects of bilateral relations including political, security, defense, trade, and economic, cultural, and people-to-people ties. The foreign ministry statement also mentioned that trade between India and Saudi Arabia reached an all-time high of US$52.75 billion in FY 2022-23. During the G20 Summit in New Delhi on Saturday and yesterday, Saudi Arabia, the United States, and others signed a pact building a major railway and port project to connect the Middle East with India and Europe. On Saturday, US deputy national security adviser Jon Finer said that a memorandum of understanding would be signed to “explore a shipping and rail transportation (project) that will enable the flow of commerce, energy, and data from here in India across the Middle East to Europe.” Key participants in the project would also include the UAE and the European Union, Finer added.