Key Points

He was welcomed with a ceremonial 21-gun salute on his arrival.

Earlier, in a special gesture, Royal Saudi Arabia fighter planes escorted PM Modi's plane as it entered Saudi airspace.

The Prime Minister is on a official visit to the Kingdom at the invitation of the Crown Prince and the Prime Minister of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Mohammed bin Salman.

PM Narendra Modi, along with Crown Prince and the PM of Saudi Arabia, Prince Mohammed bin Salman, will co-chair the second Leaders' Meeting of the India-Saudi Arabia Strategic Partnership Council during his visit to the country.

The MEA shared the details in a post on X. It said, "As a special gesture for the State Visit of PM @narendramodi, his aircraft was escorted by the Royal Saudi Air Force as it entered the Saudi airspace."

Since 2014, PM Modi has transformed the trajectory of India's relations with Saudi Arabia and the Gulf countries.

This will be PM Modi's third visit to the country, following earlier visits in 2016 and 2019.

All other Prime Ministers before him together visited Saudi Arabia three times in seven decades.

This also marks his 15th visit to a country in the Gulf region.

The Indian community in Jeddah is buzzing with excitement as preparations are underway to welcome Prime Minister Narendra Modi during his visit to the city. The community is gearing up for a traditional and vibrant welcome for the Prime Minister.

Previously in the Ministry of External Affairs' special briefing, Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri had noted that India and Saudi Arabia are expected to strengthen their defence cooperation and expand their economic partnership, currently valued at nearly USD 43 billion

This will be PM Modi's third visit to Saudi Arabia. He was earlier conferred with the Kingdom's highest civilian honour, the "King Abdulaziz Sash", during his 2016 visit.

- ANI