Dubai: External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee will pay a long-pending visit to Saudi Arabia from Saturday to deepen the bilateral strategic partnership and take the ties between the two countries to new heights.

During the two-day tour, which has been postponed several times due to various reasons, Mukherjee will discuss bilateral, regional and global issues, including trade and energy security, with top leaders of the oil-rich Kingdom.

"This is going to be the first high-level Indian visit to the Kingdom after King Abdullah's state visit to India in 2006," Rajeev Shahare, deputy chief of mission at the Indian Embassy, told reporters in Jeddah yesterday. The visit is in continuation of high-level exchanges between the two countries to strengthen the bilateral ties after Foreign Minister Prince Saud Al-Faisal toured India in February.

Mukherjee's visit is likely to set the stage for Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's visit to Saudi Arabia later this year. During his stay in the country, Mukherjee will meet King Abdullah, Crown Prince Sultan, deputy premier and minister of defence and aviation, Riyadh Governor Prince Salman and his Saudi counterpart Saud Al-Faisal, and discuss with them bilateral, regional and global issues, including trade and investment and energy security.

Source : PTI