United Arab Emirates’ Foreign Minister Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan is scheduled to make a three-day official visit to India from July 7 in a bid to grow bilateral relations and further strengthen their Comprehensive Strategic Partnership.
Sheikh Abdullah, who is also the Minister for International Cooperation, will be accompanied by a senior-level delegation and will hold talks with External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar. He will also call on Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
The visit is significant in the wake of the UAE calling for de-escalation of tensions in the Gulf and urging world powers to help secure maritime traffic and energy supplies in the Gulf of Oman following the attacks last month on two tankers in the key shipping channel.
The UAE is India's fourth largest energy supplier and this visit comes amid reports that India has reduced oil imports from Iran following the US request to "zero out" Iranian oil imports Tehran shot down a US drone over the Strait of Hormuz last month.
The UAE is India's third-largest trade partner and is also the first country to participate in India's "Strategic Petroleum Reserves" programme. It is also home to a 3.3 million-strong Indian community, the largest in the Gulf region.
The latest visit would provide the two sides an opportunity to explore new areas of cooperation to further strengthen their Comprehensive Strategic Partnership, the Indian External Affairs Ministry said.