India and Oman are on track to sign a comprehensive economic partnership agreement, Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced on Saturday. Welcoming Sultan Haitham bin Tarik the ruler of Oman, to his first State visit to India, Prime Minister Modi said that the presence of a large number of Indians in Oman is a living example of the healthy relation between the two countries.
“Our proximity is not just geographical and indeed reflects in our thousands of years old trade and cultural links. This also reflects in the way, we always give first priority to each other,” Prime Minister Narendra Modi said in his speech welcoming the ruler of Oman. In a briefing after the official meeting, Foreign Secretary Vinay Mohan Kwatra informed that this is the first State visit by an Omani ruler in 26 years. Prime Minister Modi visited Oman in February 2018.
Sultan Haitham bin Tarik took charge in 2020 after the demise of Sultan Qaboos who was known as the “architect of special ties between India and Oman”. Sultan Qaboos was posthumously honoured with the Gandhi Peace Prize for 2019 by India. Bilateral discussion held at the Hyderabad House included consultation about the situation in Israel and the Palestinians, Mr. Kwatra said explaining that India is closely following the conflict in Gaza.
The two sides signed on five documents that included an agreement between the Financial Intelligence Unit of India and the National Centre for Financial Information to prevent money laundering . As a gesture to celebrate the ancient relation between India and Oman the two sides also took up a proposal by the Ministry of Culture to recreate maritime voyage of a stitched ship which is expected to sail from Mandvi in Gujarat to Muscat during 2025 to ‘26. Prime Minister Modi and Sultan Haitham bin Tarik “strongly condemned terrorism in all its forms and manifestations”.
“They [PM Modi and Sultan Haitham bin Tarik] affirmed their commitment to enhancing cooperation to combat terrorism and underscored the significance of fostering the universal values of peace, moderation, coexistence and tolerance,” a Joint Statement issued at the end of official engagements stated.
Foreign Secretary Kwatra informed that the two sides have agreed on a vision document titled ‘A Joint Partnership For The Future’ that covers several sectors vital for upgrading the relationship. Digital connectivity, medical tourism, maritime security, hospitality, agriculture, and food security are some of the areas that the vision document has focused on. The Joint Statement informed that the leaders appreciated the announcement of the third tranche of the Oman-India Joint Investment Fund and said the fund has the “potential to galvanise investments from Oman and the Gulf region into the fastest growing sectors of the Indian economy”.
Mr. Kwatra also highlighted that India is “constantly monitoring” the maritime situation near Oman and Yemen because of increased threats to the commercial shipping vessels because of the retaliatory activities by the Yemen military forces that have in recent weeks targeted Israeli shipping vessels.
