In a special gesture, Prime Minister Narendra Modi received the Amir of Qatar, Sheikh Tamim Bin Hamad AL Thani, at the Palam Technical Airport in the national capital on Monday. The Prime Minister described the Qatar Amir as his brother and wished him a fruitful stay in India.
The two leaders shared a warm hug as they met each other.
"Went to the airport to welcome my brother, Amir of Qatar Sheikh Tamim Bin Hamad Al Thani. Wishing him a fruitful stay in India and looking forward to our meeting tomorrow," PM Modi said in a post on X.
The Qatar Amir is on a two-day state visit to India. He is accompanied by a high-level delegation, including ministers, senior officials and a business delegation. He had earlier come to India on a State Visit in March 2015.
The Amir of Qatar will be accorded a ceremonial welcome at the forecourt of Rashtrapati Bhawan on February 18.
During his visit, the Amir will hold discussions with President Droupadi Murmu, who will also host a banquet in his honour.
The Qatar Amir will hold talks with PM Modi covering various aspects of the bilateral relations.
India and Qatar have deep-rooted historical ties of friendship, trust and mutual respect.
In recent years, ties between the two countries, including those in trade, investment, energy, technology, culture, and people-to-people ties, have continued to strengthen.
The Indian community residing in Qatar forms the largest expatriate community in the country and is appreciated for its positive contribution to the progress and development of Qatar, according to an official release. The visit of Amir of Qatar will provide further momentum to the growing multifaceted partnership between the two countries, it said.
India-Qatar cooperation in diverse sectors has been steadily growing in a framework provided by historically close ties and regular and substantive engagement, including at the highest levels of the two Governments.
Defence cooperation is an important pillar of the bilateral agenda. India offers training slots in its defence institutions to several partner countries, including Qatar.
India regularly participates in the biennial Doha International Maritime Defence Exhibition and Conference (DIMDEX) in Qatar. Indian Naval and Coast Guard ships regularly visit Qatar as part of our bilateral cooperation and interaction.
India's bilateral trade with Qatar in 2022-23 was USD 18.77 billion. India's exports to Qatar during 2022-23 was USD 1.96 billion and India's imports from Qatar was USD 16.8 billion.
Qatar's key exports to India include LNG, LPG, chemicals and petrochemicals, plastics, and aluminium articles, while India's key exports to Qatar include cereals, copper articles, iron and steel articles, vegetables, fruits, spices, and processed food products, electrical and other machinery, plastic products, construction material, textiles and garments, chemicals, precious stones and rubber. (ANI)