Army Chief Gen Naravane leaves for UAE, Saudi Arabia

New Delhi:  Army Chief Gen MM Naravane on Tuesday left on a six-day tour of the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia, in a rare visit reflecting India’s growing strategic ties with the two influential Gulf nations.
The visit comes in the midst of fast-paced developments in the Gulf region including normalisation of Israel’s relations with several Arab countries as well as situation arising out of the assassination of Iran’s top nuclear weapons scientist Mohsen Fakhrizadeh.
It is for the first time that an Indian Army chief is visiting the two Gulf nations, officials said The Army chief’s first destination will be the United Arab Emirates where he will meet senior military officials and discuss avenues for enhancing bilateral defence cooperation.
“General MM Naravane, the Chief of Army Staff has proceeded on a visit to the United Arab Emirates and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia from December 9 to 14,” the Army said in a statement.
According to the official schedule, the Army Chief will visit Saudi Arabia from December 13 to 14.