Watch: Sheikh Hamdan meets Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi in New Delhi

Dubai: Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai, Deputy Prime Minister, and Minister of Defence, who is on a historic visit to India, held a meeting with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi in New Delhi on Tuesday.

Sheikh Hamdan took to his X account and shared a photo showing how he was welcomed by Modi with a firm handshake. Other images shared by him showed both leaders walking past the flags of the UAE and India on the red carpet, the meeting between them, and a group photo with ministers from both sides and senior members of Sheikh Hamdan’s accompanying delegation.

In his post, Sheikh Hamdan stated: “It was a pleasure meeting Prime Minister @NarendraModi today in New Delhi. Our conversations reaffirmed the strength of UAE–India ties, which are built on trust, shaped by history, and driven by a shared vision to create a future full of opportunity, innovation, and lasting prosperity.”

Sheikh Hamdan shared the post in Hindi as well.

Dubai’s key role

Modi also took to X to share images of his meeting with Sheikh Hamdan, which included a photo of both of them embracing each other.

“Glad to meet HH Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, the Crown Prince of Dubai. Dubai has played a key role in advancing the India-UAE Comprehensive Strategic Partnership. This special visit reaffirms our deep-rooted friendship and paves the way for even stronger collaboration in the future,” the Indian PM stated.

During the visit, Sheikh Hamdan will also hold talks with senior officials to explore opportunities to enhance bilateral cooperation and strengthen partnerships across key strategic sectors.

The visit underscores the UAE leadership’s commitment to building strategic alliances with key international partners to foster growth, drive innovation, and promote collaboration across vital sectors.

Exchange of greetings

During the meeting, Sheikh Hamdan conveyed the greetings of His Highness Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, President of the UAE; His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai; and His Highness Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Vice President, Deputy Prime Minister and Chairman of the Presidential Court. He also conveyed to India’s leadership and people the UAE leaders’ wishes for the sustained growth and development of the country.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi extended his greetings to the UAE leadership and expressed his hopes for continued progress and prosperity for the nation and its people.

Deepening ties

The two leaders discussed the deepening strategic partnership between the UAE and India, marked by a shared vision for the future. They underscored the significance of further strengthening ties, building on their long-standing relationship and their common development goals.

Sheikh Hamdan reaffirmed the UAE’s pride in the steady growth of its partnership with India, a relationship grounded in decades of mutual respect, shared interests, and a joint pursuit of progress. He expressed confidence that the next phase of cooperation would bring even greater gains across a range of strategic areas, including investment, trade, tourism, industry, infrastructure, logistics, energy, food security, advanced technology, artificial intelligence, digital transformation, and space. He noted that the partnership also covers vital sectors like healthcare, education, defence, and other key areas on both countries’ development agendas.

Indian expats hailed

Sheikh Hamdan acknowledged the valuable contributions of the Indian community to the development of the UAE. In this context, he highlighted the country’s efforts to provide an inclusive environment for all residents. He cited the UAE’s world-class infrastructure, logistics network, and flexible legislative framework, which together create a secure and growth-friendly environment for business and investment.

Incentives for investments

Praising India’s economic transformation under Prime Minister Modi’s leadership, Sheikh Hamdan looked forward to evolving the bilateral partnership to address global challenges and tap emerging opportunities. The two sides stressed the importance of offering strong incentives for greater investment and launching new joint ventures by leveraging the Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement and the Bilateral Investment Treaty signed by the two countries.

The meeting also addressed the need to boost mutual investment and encourage closer collaboration between the UAE and Indian private sectors. They discussed the potential for establishing new partnerships that take advantage of economic development in both countries.

The two leaders also discussed regional and international developments, affirming the importance of dialogue as the best means of resolving disputes, safeguarding stability, and pursuing secure and prosperous futures.