On his visit to the UAE on February 13–14, PM Modi will open the first Hindu temple in Abu Dhabi.
At a gathering in Zayed Sports City in Abu Dhabi, Prime Minister Narendra Modi will also speak to the Indian community living in the country.
On February 13 and 14, Prime Minister Narendra Modi will go to the United Arab Emirates (UAE) to meet with the senior leadership of one of India’s closest strategic allies in West Asia and to dedicate the BAPS Mandir, the city’s first Hindu temple.
Given the strong relationships between the presidents of the two nations, Modi’s travel to the UAE will be his eighth since 2015 and his third in the last eight months.
The foreign affairs ministry said in a statement on Saturday that Modi will meet one-on-one with UAE President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan to explore ways to expand and fortify their strategic alliance. Additionally, the two presidents will discuss and exchange opinions on regional and global concerns.
Additionally, he will meet Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, the UAE’s prime minister, vice president, and minister of defense. At his request, Modi will attend the World Government Summit 2024, which will take place in Dubai, as a distinguished guest and present a unique keynote speech.
The opening of the BAPS Mandir is anticipated to be the centerpiece of the visit, and Modi will also speak to the Indian diaspora in the UAE at a gathering at Abu Dhabi’s Zayed Sports City.
According to the statement, India and the United Arab Emirates enjoy “warm, close and multi-faceted relations underpinned by strong political, cultural and economic linkages.” After Modi’s August 2015 visit to the UAE, bilateral relations were upgraded to a comprehensive strategic alliance.
To encourage the use of the Indian rupee and the UAE dirham for cross-border transactions, the two nations signed the Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) in February 2022 and the Local Currency Settlement (LCS) System in July 2023.
In 2022–2023, the two nations were among their top trading partners, with $85 billion in commerce going both ways. In terms of foreign direct investments made in India in 2022–2023, the UAE is among the top four.
The largest expat population in the emirates is made up of about 3.5 Indians. According to the statement, their beneficial contributions to the advancement of their host nation have served as a “important anchor of our excellent bilateral engagement with the UAE.”