SAUDI FOREIGN MINISTER IN INDIA

SAUDI FOREIGN MINISTER IN INDIA

Context:

Saudi Arabia's foreign minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud is in India on a 3-day visit to discuss Afghanistan affairs

About his Visit:

• Prince Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud arrived in New Delhi on a three-day tour.
• The Saudi minister met Prime Minister Narendra Modi and minister of external affairs S Jaishankar to hold bilateral talks on a range of issues, including the rapidly evolving situation in Afghanistan in the wake of the Taliban takeover.
• The Saudi foreign minister's visit to India comes days after he batted for the Taliban regime in Afghanistan.
• It was reported that India's close allies in the Middle East, Saudi Arabia, and the UAE, are disturbed by the active role being played by Qatar, Turkey, and Pakistan in engaging with Kabul’s Sunni Islamist regime.

India - Saudi Arabia Relations:

• Saudi Arabia is currently India’s 2nd-largest supplier of crude oil (Iraq has been India's top supplier).
• Saudi Arabia is keen to play a role in the establishment of Strategic Petroleum Reserves (SPRs) at Padur in Karnataka.

Saudi Arabia:

• It is officially known as the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.
• It is a country in Western Asia.
• It spans the vast majority of the Arabian Peninsula, with a land area of approximately 2,150,000 km².
• It is the largest country in the Middle East and the 2nd-largest country in the Arab world.
• Its capital is Riyadh.
• Its currency is the Saudi riyal.