New Delhi [India], April 19 (ANI): India and Saudi Arabia are expected to strengthen their defence cooperation and expand their economic partnership, currently valued at nearly USD 43 billion during Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to the Kingdom on April 22 and 23, Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri said on Saturday.

Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri said that defence cooperation has grown rapidly in recent years, with joint exercises, training, and defence trade gaining momentum.

'The Defence Partnership has witnessed several firsts in the past few years. We had the first ever joint land forces exercise between the two countries in 2024. I think it's called the 'Sada Tanseeq'. Two editions have been held of joint naval exercises. We've had regular exchanges on training and capacity building and staff talks are taking place across all the three services,' he said.

According to the MEA, India is also emerging as a key defence supplier to Saudi Arabia. 'Our cooperation has also expanded on the defence industry front. And India is gaining space as an important supplier of defence stores to Saudi Arabia. And a special agreement on the export of munitions to the Kingdom worth about USD 225 million was signed last year,' he added.

The two countries will also discuss deepening economic engagement during the visit. The value of bilateral trade in FY 2023-24 was close to USD 43 billion.

'The value of total trade between the two countries in FY 23-24 was nearly USD 43 billion. Saudi Arabia is India's fifth-largest trading partner overall, and India is the Kingdom's second-largest trading partner overall,' Misri said.

India's imports from Saudi Arabia stood at USD 31.42 billion, while exports were valued at USD 11.56 billion. 'Apart from trade, investment also continues to do well. And there are investments across different sectors such as energy, steel, chemicals, food sector, telecommunications and startups,' he added.

Energy will also be a key topic during the talks. 'The value of the energy trade in FY 23- 24 was USD 25.7 billion. The Kingdom remains India's third largest crude and petroleum sourcing destination... and also the third largest source of LPG for India, accounting for almost 18 per cent of the total LPG imports of India,' Misri said.

The visit will include the second summit-level meeting of the Strategic Partnership Council, which was established during Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman's visit to India in 2019. The council has two subcommittees, one focused on security and cultural relations, and the other on trade and investment.

'This is a visit at the invitation of His Royal Highness Prince Mohammed Bin Salman, Crown Prince and Prime Minister of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia,' Misri said, adding that the two leaders share 'a very close personal relationship with a lot of warmth and respect for each other.'

This will be PM Modi's third visit to Saudi Arabia. He was earlier conferred with the Kingdom's highest civilian honour, the 'King Abdulaziz Sash', during his 2016 visit. (ANI)