India has announced that will be furthering its relationship with Saudi Arabia by participating in exploration of oil and gas in the country. This information comes on the heels of a meeting between Indian External Affairs Minister, Pranab Mukherjee and Saudi King Abdullah bin Abdulaziz in the desert state.  The Indian External Affairs Minister is currently on a two-day visit to Saudi Arabia. The Saudi King has referred to New Delhi as the ‘dearest friend’, with whom he wants relations to grow, including in the field of energy.
 

Pranab Mukherjee happens to be the first Indian Foreign Minister to visit Saudi Arabia in seven years. During his meeting with the premier of Saudi Arabia, Mukherjee sought a change in bilateral ties between the two countries from buyer-seller to one of partnership. The meeting ensued for 40 minutes and officials state that the King Abdullah bin Abdulaziz seemed upbeat about the proposition. The two sides also deliberated on a number of other issues including bilateral investment opportunities and Middle East situation.

 

The Indian minister announced later on that Indian sought participation in exploration, exploitation and development of gas-based and petrochemical-based industry in Saudi Arabia. He further highlighted that companies from India will be interested in investing in Saudi Arabia in the energy field. It was also revealed that India which procures 26 million tonnes of crude oil from Saudi Arabia each year, accounts for one-fourth of its imports of the commodity.