UAE-INDIA “strategic dialogue” meetings kick off

The UAE and India held first meeting of “Strategic Dialogue” in New Delhi on Friday ahead of the anticipated visit of Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Deputy Supreme Commander of the Armed Forces as chief guest for the Indian Republic Day celebrations scheduled to be held January 24-26.
The dialogue was held as per an earlier bilateral decision to build a Comprehensive Strategic Partnership between the two states.

Co-chaired by Minister of State at the Indian External Affairs M J Akbar and his UAE counterpart Dr. Anwar Gargash, Today's meeting tackled number of issues ranging from cooperation in the areas of trade and investments to expanding the bilateral cooperation to new areas under the strategic partnership.
                                                                              
Comprising of a number of relevant ministries and departments from both the countries, the two delegations discussed issues pertaining to the energy security and renewable energy, defense and security, electronics and information technology and space.
“During the day-long meeting, the two sides discussed a number of issues ranging from cooperation in trade and investments to energy security and renewable energy, defence and security, electronics and information technology and space,” the Indian government said.
Commenting on Sheikh Mohammed’s visit scheduled for Tuesday, K C Singh, a former Indian ambassador to the UAE, said that India-UAE relations cannot be measured by trade alone, despite its volume.
“Dubai is an entre pot for Indian goods to the entire region,” he said. “India and the UAE have been seeking genuine convergence. Hopefully, with this visit, some major steps in that direction should be taken.