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Modi govt hosts Oman FM as its first foreign guest
Ashok Tuteja
Tribune News Service

New Delhi, June 3
Oman Foreign Minister Yusuf bin Alawi bin Abdullah today became the first top foreign dignitary to visit India after the installation of the Narendra Modi government.

Significance is being attached in diplomatic circles to the fact that Oman is a key Islamic nation which has been supportive of India at international forums on issues such as Kashmir and also backed India’s bid for a permanent seat at the UN Security Council.

Shortly after his arrival here, the visiting minister held talks with External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj on bilateral relations in various fields, including economic, political, defence and security, and agreed to strengthen them. He also called on the Indian PM and conveyed the greetings of the Sultan of Oman, reaffirming the importance of his country’s relations with India. Modi thanked the Oman leadership for looking after the welfare of the nearly 700,000 settled in the Gulf country.

According to official sources, the meetings between the two sides signalled a “desire for continued engagement at high levels between the two countries”.