NEW DELHI: A day before his first official visit to Oman and Qatar, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh yesterday underlined the “vital importance” of the Gulf region, home to 4.5 million Indian diaspora, for India’s security and prosperity and called for strengthening economic ties between the two sides.

“The Gulf region is an area of vital importance for India’s security and prosperity. We have always enjoyed a very special relationship with countries of the region,” Singh said in a statement last evening ahead of his three-day visit to Oman and Qatar that begins today.

“Both India and Oman have a special vision for our bilateral relationship and I will use my visit to find ways in which we can concretize this vision into a broad and mutually beneficial cooperative framework between the two countries.”

During his talks with Oman Deputy Prime Minister Sayyid Fahd Mahmoud Al-Said, “detailed discussions” on Indo-Oman bilateral ties would be held. “I will use my visit to find ways in which we can concretize this vision into a broad and mutually beneficial cooperative framework between the two countries,” Singh said. Regarding India’s ties with Qatar, Singh said: “We attach great importance to our ties with Qatar, which is one of the largest and most reliable suppliers of our energy needs from the region. Given the complementarities that exist between us, I am confident that we can build a mutually beneficial strategic partnership in this sector.”

During his meetings with Emir of Qatar Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa Al-Thani and his counterpart Sheikh Hamad bin Jassam bin Jabor Al-Thani, Singh said: “I will discuss with them ways in which we can further strengthen our relations and move them forward in all their dimensions.”

Meanwhile, India will discuss its concerns about civilian sufferings in Sri Lanka in the wake of the military offensive when President Mahinda Rajapaksa comes here next week to attend the second BIMSTEC summit, a seven-nation grouping that acts as a bridge between South Asia and Southeast Asia.

Rajapaksa will be among leaders of other BIMSTEC — the Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation — countries to attend the Nov. 13 summit that India is hosting. The grouping comprises India, Bangladesh, Nepal, Sri Lanka, Bhutan, Myanmar and Thailand.

Singh will also hold talks with Nepal’s Maoist Prime Minister Prachanda on the sidelines of the summit.

— With input from agencies