The State visit of His Highness Shaikh Mohammad Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Deputy Supreme Commander of the UAE Armed Forces, to India from 24th to 26th January as the Chief Guest of India's 68th Republic Day celebrations marked a momentous occasion in relations between India and the UAE.
A joint statement issued at the end of the visit by the UAE Crown Prince declared “strong condemnation of and resolute opposition to terrorism in all its forms and manifestations, wherever committed and by whomever, and declared that there could be no justification for terrorism anywhere.”
Though the statement did not mention Pakistan by name, It said, “the two sides condemned efforts, including by States, to use religion to justify, sustain and sponsor terrorism against other countries. They further deplored efforts by countries to give religious and sectarian colour to political issues and pointed out the responsibility of all States to control the activities of the so-called 'non-State actors'.”
The statement added that the strong bonds of friendship between UAE and India have found clear expression in the series of high-level bilateral visits between the two countries in the past two years, noting that the visit afforded a timely opportunity to both Abu Dhabi Crown Prince and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi to further build upon their close and regular consultations which began in August 2015.
The two sides expressed satisfaction at the progress made in bilateral ties since Prime Minister Modi's August 2015 visit to UAE and reiterated their common resolve to further intensifying and strengthening the constructive UAE-India bilateral engagement.
During the two -day visit of the crown prince, India and United Arab Emirates (UAE) signed as many as 14 bilateral pacts, including on defence and strategic partnership as well as on the issue of prevention, recovery and repatriation related to human trafficking, especially of women and children.
On the Agreement on Comprehensive Strategic Partnership between India and the UAE, a statement from the External Affairs Ministry said: “This is a general framework agreement which highlights the areas of bilateral cooperation identified under the comprehensive strategic partnership as agreed upon in the high level joint statements issued in the August 2015 and February 2016.”
The agreements between two sides have fructified after Prime Minister Narendra Modi and visiting Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan held delegation-level talks here today. The Crown Prince is on a state visit and will also grace the Republic Day parade tomorrow as the chief guest.
The official statement said an MoU was signed that seeks to enhance bilateral cooperation on the issue of prevention, rescue, recovery and repatriation related to human trafficking, especially of women and children expeditiously.
In the pact signed between Ministry of Defence of both countries, the Memorandum of Understanding aims to establish cooperation in the identified fields of defence manufacturing and technology, including through studies, research, development, innovation and cooperation between public and private sector institutions of the two countries. “The two sides will cooperate in areas of armaments, defence industries and transfer of technology,” it said — Organiser Bureau
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