Jaishankar arrives in Riyadh to attend first India-Gulf Cooperation Council foreign ministers' meet

External affairs minister S Jaishankar

External affairs minister S Jaishankar on September 8 arrived in Riyadh to participate in the first India-Gulf Cooperation Council Foreign Ministers' meeting.

Soon after his arrival, Jaishankar was received by Abdulmajeed Al Smari, Saudi Arabia's deputy minister for protocol affairs.

"Arrived in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia to take part in the First India - Gulf Cooperation Council Foreign Ministers’ meeting. Thank Abdulmajeed Al Smari, deputy minister for protocol affairs for the warm reception," Jaishankar said in a post on X.

The minister is on a six-day visit to Saudi Arabia, Germany and Switzerland with a larger aim to boost overall bilateral ties and deliberate on pressing regional and global challenges.

He will be in the Saudi capital Riyadh for a two-day trip primarily to attend the first India-Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) foreign ministers' meeting, according to the ministry of external affairs (MEA).

The GCC is an influential grouping comprising the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, Oman, Qatar and Kuwait. The total volume of India's trade with GCC countries stood at $184.46 billion in the financial year 2022-23.

In Riyadh, Jaishankar is also expected to hold bilateral meetings with foreign ministers of several GCC member countries.

The MEA said India and the GCC enjoy a deep and multifaceted relationship, including in areas of trade and investment, energy, cultural and people-to-people ties.

"The GCC region has emerged as a major trading partner for India and is home to a large Indian expatriate community, numbering around 8.9 million," it said in a statement.