PM Modi may visit UAE in January during Dubai Expo

Nov 28,2021

Prime Minister Narendra Modi is planning a trip to the United Arab Emirates (UAE) in January as a show of support for the Dubai Expo - where the India Pavilion has been a huge draw - in the backdrop of growing strategic ties with the Gulf nation.

Besides the proposed visit to the India Pavilion, the PM may meet the top UAE leadership during his trip, said people aware of the matter.

The India Pavilion plans to host several events in January.

The organisers are expecting a big footfall from India during the Expo, which started on October 1 and will continue till March next year. So far, the pavilion has attracted about 400,000 people.

Commerce and industry minister Piyush Goyal, who had inaugurated the pavilion, tweeted, "The India Pavilion at the Expo 2020 Dubai continues to enchant the world by projecting an India that is Reforming, Performing & Transforming."

Recently foreign minister S Jaishankar also visited the pavilion, as did petroleum and natural gas minister Hardeep Singh Puri and minister of state for external affairs V Muraleedharan.

Aman Puri, Consul General of India in Dubai, recently told local media, "We are thrilled to receive such an encouraging response from the visitors towards the India Pavilion. The record turnout reaffirms India's position as a crucial business destination that offers endless opportunities to the worldwide community. As we represent India at the Expo 2020, it is a moment of pride for us as we receive so much love from the global cohort of leading business delegates and visitors from across the world.

India Pavilion was recently recognised as one of the most iconic pavilions at the Expo by the American Institute of Architects and the recently launched Textiles Week.

India has elevated the bilateral partnership with the UAE over the past six years through frequent visits of top leadership and expansion of defence ties and cooperation in areas of strategic significance including space. The UAE has emerged as a regional power taking the lead in addressing various crises.

Recently, India and the UAE, together with Israel and the US, formed a West Asian Quad to push economic projects in the region. Foreign ministers of the four countries are planning to meet in person in Dubai in the new year.