Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday received at the airport in New Delhi Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, signifying importance India attaches to the visit by the leader of the powerful Gulf nation.
During their talks on Wednesday, Modi and Salman are also expected to look at ways to enhancing defence ties, including having a joint naval exercise, official sources said.
Official sources said there has been a “change” in the way Saudi Arabia looked at relations between India and Pakistan and that the powerful Gulf nation has a better understanding of the cross-border terrorism. The sources said the two sides are looking at joint exercise between the two navies besides significantly ramping up overall defence cooperation. According to the Ministry of External Affairs, the Crown Prince will leave New Delhi around 11:50 pm on Wednesday.
His visit comes in the backdrop of the escalating tension between India and Pakistan following the Pulwama terror attack carried out by Pakistan-based Jaish-e-Mohammad (JeM) terror group in which 40 CRPF were killed.