Mar. 2 – Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh returned to New Delhi yesterday after a historic and successful three-day visit to Saudi Arabia, where he met with King Abdullah and the host country’s quasi-government, the Shura Council.
Mr. Singh’s trip marked the first time an Indian leader visited the kingdom since 1982.
During the visit, the two countries discussed several topics including investment, culture, science and technology, and an extradition treaty, but Prime Minister Singh put particularly strong emphasis on his desire for peace and stability in the region – starting with India’s relationship with Pakistan.
“We seek cooperative relations with Pakistan. Our objective is a permanent peace. We recognize that we are bound together by a shared future. If there is cooperation between India and Pakistan, vast opportunities will open up for trade, travel and development that will create prosperity in both countries and in South Asia as a whole,” Prime Minister Singh told members of the Saudi Shura Council.
“If Pakistan co-operates with India, there is no problem that we cannot solve and we can walk an extra mile to open a new chapter in relations between the two countries.”
Prime Minister Singh also reaffirmed India’s support for the struggle of the Palestinian people as well as his country’s approval of the Arab peace plan.
The conclusion of the visit saw a resigning of a new Riyadh Declaration which will hopefully reinforce future relations between India and Saudi Arabia as the two countries continue to work together to bring peace and prosperity to the Middle East and South Asia.
