Lagatar24 Desk
New Delhi, Oct 23: Crown Prince and Prime Minister of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA) Mohammed bin Salman of Saudi Arabia is set to visit India in the middle of November on his way to Indonesia, according to reports.
Saudi crown Prince and PM to visit India next month.
— WLVN🔍 (@TheLegateIN) October 22, 2022
The visit is expected to last a few hours on November 14, and both leaders are expected to depart for Bali to attend the G-20 summit there on November 15-16. “He will arrive early morning on November 14 and leave later in the day for the G20 summit in Indonesia’s Bali,” sources said.
The visit is on an invitation from Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who sent him a letter through the External Affairs Minister in September.
Notably, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar, who visited Riyadh in September for bilateral talks, had conveyed the PM’s invitation to the Crown Prince, asking him to visit at an ‘early date’. Sources say the visit of the Saudi leader could cast doubt over Modi’s attendance at meetings with the 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), and the 18-member East Asian Summit (EAS) leaders meeting in Cambodia around the same time.
During their meeting, PM Salman and PM Modi are expected to exchange views on the present energy security scenario due to the Russian war in Ukraine, and the western coalition sanctions that neither India nor the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia has joined.
The visit has geopolitical significance given US-Saudi tensions over oil production cuts by the OPEC+ grouping that includes Russia, after which US President Joseph Biden, who will also be in Bali, had warned of ‘consequences’ for the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.
Prior to the Crown Prince, the Saudi Energy Minister Abdulaziz bin Salman travelled to India this week as OPEC+ decided to reduce oil output. In parallel, he conducted internet conversations with Chinese authorities.
