New Delhi: External Affairs Minister, S Jaishankar, will travel to Riyadh, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, from 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 Foreign Ministers from GCC member countries.
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.
On the second leg of the visit, the External Affairs Minister will travel to Berlin, Germany for a 2-day visit from 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, the EAM will meet the German Federal Foreign Minister as well as the leadership and other Ministers from the German government with an objective of reviewing the entire gamut of bilateral relations between India and Germany.
The External Affairs Minister will thereafter travel to Geneva, Switzerland for an official visit from 12-13 September. Geneva is home to a large number of UN bodies and international organisations. During the visit, EAM will meet with heads and representatives of international organisations with whom India is actively engaged.
During the visit, EAM will also meet the Swiss Foreign Minister to review the close partnership between the two countries and explore avenues to enhance the bilateral relationship further.
