Indian PM on historic visit to Saudi Arabia

The welcoming delegation included Crown Prince Sultan, deputy premier and minister of defense and aviation, Interior Minister Prince Naif, Riyadh Gov. Prince Salman, Commerce and Industry Minister Zainal Alireza, Culture and Information Minister Abdul Aziz Khoja, Shoura Council Chairman Abdullah Al-Asheikh, several members of the royal family, commanders of the armed forces, diplomats and senior members of the government.

Singh was accompanied by his wife, Gursharan Kaur, Commerce and Industry Minister Anand Sharma, Petroleum and Natural Gas Minister Murli Deora, Health and Family Welfare Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad, Deputy Foreign Minister Sashi Tharoor; National Security Adviser Shiv Shankar Menon and Principal Secretary to the Prime Minister T.K.A. Nair.

The trip marks the first visit by an Indian prime minister since a visit by Indira Gandhi in 1982.

"It was an unprecedented welcome to our prime minister," said Vishnu Prakash, joint secretary and spokesman of the Ministry of External Affairs at a news conference.

Singh is slated to hold discussions with Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah on Sunday and is scheduled to deliver a speech at the Shoura Council on Monday about the constructive role played by the Shoura in the political and economic development of the Kingdom.

On Sunday, Singh will meet Foreign Minister Prince Saud Al-Faisal, Al-Naimi, and Alireza. Singh is also slated on Sunday to address the Council of Saudi Chambers of Commerce and Industry; he will meet Prince Naif in the afternoon.

Nine agreements are to be signed during the visit on Sunday night at Al-Rawdah Palace in Riyadh, including an extradition treaty and memoranda of understanding on scientific and technological cooperation.

"My visit carries special significance," said the prime minister to reporters prior to his departure from Delhi. "I am conscious of the fact that this will be only the third visit by an Indian prime minister to Saudi Arabia. My visit reflects the strong mutual desire of both countries to reinvigorate our relations, as manifested in King Abdullah's historic visit to India in 2006 as the chief guest at the Indian Republic Day," he added. "India and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia have enjoyed special relations based on several millennia of civilizational and cultural linkages and people-to-people exchanges."

The Kingdom hosts 1.8 million Indian expatriates and it welcomes 140,000 Indian Haj pilgrims every year.