President Droupadi Murmu hosts Oman Sultan Haitham bin Tarik at Rashtrapati Bhavan
Dec 16, 2023
New Delhi [India], December 16 : President Droupadi Murmu on Saturday hosted Oman Sultan Haitham bin Tarik at the Rashtrapati Bhavan. She received him and the two leaders warmly greeted each other. 
Haitham Bin Tarik met Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar, Prime Minister Narendra Modi and other dignitaries after President Droupadi Murmu received him at the Rashtrapati Bhavan in Delhi. President Murmu, Vice President Dhankhar and PM Modi also met with dignitaries from Oman. 
External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar, Union Minister for Commerce and Industry Piyush Goyal, Union Minister of State (MoS) for External Affairs V Muraleedharan, Foreign Secretary Vinay Kwatra and other officials were present on the occasion. 
Earlier in the day, Oman Sultan Haitham bin Tarik held a meeting with Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar. The leaders underlined the deep-rooted ties between India and Oman founded on the history of friendship, people-to-people ties and cultural connect.
In a post shared on X, Vice President stated, "Hon'ble Vice-President of India, Shri Jagdeep Dhankhar, called on His Majesty Sultan Haitham Bin Tarik of Sultanate of Oman, today. The leaders underlined the deep-rooted ties between India and Oman founded on a rich history of friendship, cultural connect and people-to-people ties."
Oman Sultan Haitham bin Tarik also held a meeting with PM Narendra Modi at Hyderabad House in Delhi. The two leaders discussed ways to deepen cooperation in commerce, culture, defence, and innovation.
Taking to X, PM Modi stated, "Had an excellent meeting with His Majesty Sultan Haitham bin Tarik of Oman. Reviewing the full range of bilateral ties, we discussed ways to deepen cooperation in commerce, culture, defence, innovation and more."
Speaking at the meeting of the joint delegation, PM Modi said, "Today we are adopting a new India-Oman joint vision, a partnership for the future. In this joint vision, concrete action points have been agreed upon in ten different areas. I am confident that the joint vision will give a new and modern shape to our partnership."
"I am happy that the discussion on the CEPA agreement is going on and two rounds of discussion have been successfully completed, in which many important issues have been agreed upon. I hope that we will soon be able to sign this agreement which will add a new dimension to our economic cooperation," PM Modi added.
Terming the Sultan's maiden State visit as 'historic', PM Modi said, "I am happy to welcome you to India. Today is a historic day in Oman-India relations as after 26 years, the Sultan of Oman has come to India on a state visit and I have got the opportunity to welcome you. On behalf of the people of India, I welcome you."
Oman Sultan also visited the National Gallery of Modern Art in Delhi. Earlier in the day, the Sultan of Oman was accorded a ceremonial reception at the forecourt of Rashtrapati Bhavan in New Delhi on Saturday, the second day of his state visit to India.
PM Modi and President Droupadi Murmu received the Sultan at the Rashtrapati Bhawan. Sultan Haitham bin Tarik then inspected a Guard of Honour by the combined defence services.
On December 15, Sultan arrived at the Delhi airport for a three-day State visit and was received by Union Minister of State (MoS) for External Affairs, V Muraleedharan.
Notably, India and Oman share a long-standing friendship rooted in historical, cultural, and economic ties. Furthermore, people-to-people contact between India and Oman can be traced back 5,000 years. The diplomatic relations between the two countries were established in 1955 and were upgraded to a strategic partnership in 2008.
