New Delhi, Dec 18 (IANS) Union Home Minister and Minister of Cooperation Amit Shah on Thursday congratulated Prime Minister Narendra Modi on being conferred Oman’s highest civilian honour, ‘The First Class of the Order of Oman’.

In a post on X, HM Shah said, “Oman’s highest civilian honour, ‘The First Class of the Order of Oman’, being conferred on PM Shri Narendra Modi Ji is a grand endorsement of his statesmanship and his acceptance as a global leader. The back-to-back honours to our Prime Minister Modi Ji attest to the power of 140 crore Indians and the emergence of India as a transformed nation under his leadership.”

This is the 29th such global honour for PM Modi.

On Tuesday, Prime Minister Modi was conferred the highest award of Ethiopia – the ‘Great Honour Nishan of Ethiopia’ – by Ethiopian counterpart Abiy Ahmed in a special ceremony hosted at the Addis International Convention Centre.

PM Modi was conferred the award for his exceptional contribution towards strengthening the bilateral partnership and for his visionary leadership as a global statesman. PM Modi had expressed his gratitude to Prime Minister Abiy and the people of Ethiopia for this honour.

Earlier on Thursday, PM Modi and Oman Sultan Haitham Bin Tarik held a meeting in Muscat, discussing ways to add greater depth to the strategic partnership further. Both leaders also witnessed the exchange of key Memoranda of Understanding (MoUs) and agreements.

The two leaders welcomed the signing of the Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA), terming it a “milestone” in bilateral ties and expressing 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 attended the meeting held at the Al Baraka Palace in Muscat.

“Celebrating 70 years of India-Oman Diplomatic ties: An all-encompassing relationship, united by maritime heritage and shared destiny! PM Narendra Modi met His Majesty Sultan Haitham Bin Tarik in Muscat, Oman. Both leaders noted that the completion of 70 years of diplomatic relations between India – Oman is a landmark in the bilateral partnership. They explored ways to further add greater depth to the India-Oman Strategic Partnership,” Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal posted on X.

–IANS

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