New Delhi: The UAE and India are set to unveil a series of new agreements which will strengthen their strategic partnership in new areas, a top Indian official said, as His Highness Shaikh Mohammad Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Deputy Supreme Commander of the UAE Armed Forces, began a three-day official visit to India on Wednesday.

The memoranda of understanding (MoUs) that will be signed between the two countries range from infrastructure investment, cooperation between financial and insurance agencies and renewable energy to cyber security, forging stronger cultural links and exchange of skill sets, Anil Wadhwa, Secretary East, Indian Ministry of External Affairs, said on Wednesday.

“The visit of His Highness Shaikh Mohammad Bin Zayed Al Nahyan to India is one of the highest-level visits of the Gulf leadership to India. This is a vital visit and will take the UAE-India relationship forward. Both the UAE and India decided to elevate their bilateral relations to a comprehensive strategic partnership during Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to the UAE in August last year. Shaikh Mohammad’s visit will provide the opportunity for detailed discussions on the domains of that existing partnership and further build on it,” Wadhwa said at a media briefing yesterday.

“A number of new agreements between the UAE and India are proposed to be signed during the visit of Shaikh Mohammad. The exact number of Memorandums of Understanding [MoUs] to be signed are still under discussion — some have been finalised and some are still being finalised,” he said.

According to him, the agreements scheduled to be signed include the participation of foreign institutional investors in the Indian infrastructure fund, a general framework agreement on renewable energy cooperation, an MoU between the Indian Space Research Organisation and the UAE Space Agency and an agreement between the insurance regulatory authorities of both countries. “There is a possibility of an agreement between the Dubai Economic Council and the Export Import Bank of India, as well as between the Securities and Exchange Board of India and the Financial Services Regulatory Authority of the Abu Dhabi Global Market,” he said.

Agreements between the National Skill Development Authority of India and the National Qualification Authority in UAE are also on the cards, as were pacts on cybersecurity. “There is also a proposal to set up an executive programme on cultural cooperation between India and the UAE,” Wadhwa said.

Noting that the UAE was home to 2.6 million Indians, while more than 7 million Indians live in Gulf countries, Wadhwa said the Gulf region was also the source of nearly 60 per cent of India’s energy needs, while the UAE specifically was one of India’s largest export destinations as well as a major source of remittances to India — more than $15 billion (Dh55.09 billion) was remitted from the UAE to India in 2013.

“Traditionally, our main interests in the UAE have been to expand mutual trade and investment partnerships, and from an Indian point of view, the continued welfare of the large number of expats based there. The UAE and India have been trading partners for a very long time. The UAE has been among the top 10 FDI investors in India since 2000,” Wadhwa said.

THE PROGRAMME

His Highness Shaikh Mohammad Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Deputy Supreme Commander of the UAE Armed Forces, arrived in New Delhi yesterday (Wednesday) at the start of a three-day official visit. Here is the scheduled programme for the next two days:

THURSDAY

Thursday: Shaikh Mohammad will receive a Guard of Honour at the Rashtrapati Bhavan (Indian presidential palace), accompanied by Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Afterwards, he will visit Raj Ghat, the memorial for Mahatma Gandhi, where he will sign the visitor’s book and plant a sapling. He will then have a short discussion with Modi at his official residence, following which he will meet Indian President Pranab Mukherjee for an official lunch. In the evening, Shaikh Mohammad will meet Indian Vice-President Hamid Ansari. Later, Shaikh Mohammad and the Indian Prime Minister will jointly announce several agreements and issue a press statement. This will be followed by a working dinner hosted in Shaikh Mohammad’s honour by Modi.

FRIDAY

Shaikh Mohammad will travel to Mumbai — he will visit the Bombay Stock Exchange in the afternoon and interact with selected financial institutions and people. The UAE Embassy will host a reception in honour of Shaikh Mohammad in the evening.