Qatari Prime Minister Sheikh Abdullah bin Nasser bin Khalifa Al Thani will visit India on December 3 and hold discussions with his Indian counterpart Narendra Modi on bilateral, regional and multilateral issues of common interest. With Qatar being the largest supplier of LNG to India, the two leaders are also likely to discuss ways to enhance cooperation in the strategic areas of energy. Announcing the visit, External Affairs Ministry Spokesperson Vikas Swarup said Sheikh Abdullah, also the country's interior minister, is coming to India at the invitation of Modi and the two leaders will hold discussions "on bilateral, regional and multilateral issues of common interest". This is the first visit of Sheikh Abdullah to India and the third high-level bilateral engagement between the two countries in the past two years, which underlines India's growing ties with Qatar. The visit of Qatari Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani to India in March 2015 was followed by visit of Prime Minister Modi to Qatar this June.

Source: dna November 24, 2016 18:19 UTC