Saudi army chief makes first ‘historic’ visit to India

NEW DELHI – Serving Commander of the Royal Saudi Land Forces, Lieutenant General Fahd Bin Abdullah Mohammed Al-Mutair visited India for first time this week.

The Indian Ministry of Defence in a statement said that Saudi army chief arrived in India on Monday (February 14) on a three-day visit that ended on Wednesday.

“This was the first ever visit by a serving royal Saudi land forces commander to India and marks a deepening bilateral defence cooperation between the two countries,” the statement added.

It mentioned that Indian Army Chief Manoj Mukund Naravane had paid a historic visit to Saudi Arabia in December 2020 as he was first any top Indian general to visit the kingdom.

Lieutenant General Fahd Bin Abdullah Mohammed Al-Mutair, Commander, Royal Saudi Land Forces, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia received a Guard of Honour at the #SouthBlock, New Delhi.
#DefenceCooperation#IndiaSaudiArabiaFriendship pic.twitter.com/VJzfR73C1n

— ADG PI - INDIAN ARMY (@adgpi) February 15, 2022

The aim of the visit was to boost bilateral defence cooperation between the two countries.

Per details, Saudi army chief was received by Naravane February 15, 2022 at South Block where he was accorded a Ceremonial Guard of Honour.

Lieutenant General Fahd Bin Abdullah Mohammed Al-Mutair, Commander, Royal Saudi Land Forces, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia called on General MM Naravane #COAS & discussed ways to further enhance the bilateral defence cooperation between the two countries.#IndiaSaudiArabiaFriendship pic.twitter.com/sU72L1EWPQ

— ADG PI - INDIAN ARMY (@adgpi) February 15, 2022

He met the COAS for significant bilateral discussions and was briefed on security aspects.

“The relationship between India and Saudi Arabia has grown owing to common interests in economic prosperity, eliminating the scourge of terrorism and mitigating the effects of climate change. Defence diplomacy forms one of the major tenets of the overall relationship,” the statement read.