Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Oman Sultan Haitham Bin Tarik on Thursday discussed steps to consolidate the strategic partnership between their two countries with the Indian leader stating that the partnership between the two countries was making itself future-ready through AI collaboration, digital learning, innovation partnership, and entrepreneurship exchange.
The two leaders welcomed the signing of the Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA), terming it as a “milestone” in bilateral ties and expressed confidence that it will strengthen the strategic partnership.
They also discussed issues of regional and global interest. External Affairs Minister (EAM) S Jaishankar, Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal, National Security Advisor (NSA) Ajit Doval and other officials also attended the meeting held at the Al Baraka Palace in Muscat.
The two leaders explored ways to further add greater depth to the India-Oman Strategic Partnership,” Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) spokesperson posted on X. “The leaders welcomed the signing of the Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) as a milestone in bilateral ties, affirming that it would significantly strengthen India-Oman strategic partnership. Both exchanged views on a broad range of topics including defence, security, trade and investment, energy, agriculture, technology, new and emerging areas, culture and people-to-people ties among others. They also discussed issues of regional and global interest,” the spokesperson added.
The PM, who was on a two-day visit to Oman, also addressed a meeting of the large Indian community in Muscat. The audience included more than 700 students from various Indian schools. This year holds special significance for Indian schools in Oman, as they celebrate 50 years of their establishment in the country.
Speaking about how well the Indian community is regarded in Oman, he underlined that co-existence and cooperation have been a hallmark of the Indian diaspora.
Modi noted that India and Oman enjoy age-old connections, from Mandvi to Muscat, which today is being nurtured by the diaspora through hard work and togetherness. He appreciated the community participating in the Bharat ko Janiye quiz in large numbers.
Emphasising that knowledge has been at the center of India-Oman ties, he congratulated them on the completion of 50 years of Indian schools in the country. The PM also thanked the leadership of Oman for its support for welfare of the community.
He also spoke about India’s transformational growth and development, of its speed and scale of change, and the strength of its economy as reflected by the more than 8 percent growth in the last quarter. Alluding to the achievements of his government in the last 11 years, he noted that there have been transformational changes in the country in the fields of infrastructure development, manufacturing, healthcare, green growth, and women empowerment.
He further stated that India was preparing itself for the 21st century through developing world-class innovation, startup, and Digital Public Infrastructure ecosystem. The PM stated that India’s UPI – which accounts for about 50% of all digital payments made globally – was a matter of pride and achievement.
The PM conveyed India’s deep commitment for welfare of the diaspora, highlighting that whenever and wherever our people are in need of help, the Government is there to hold their hand.