NEW DELHI: Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri held a series of high-level meetings with senior Emirati officials to review progress in the India-UAE Comprehensive Strategic Partnership and explore new avenues for bilateral cooperation, during his visit to United Arab Emirates (UAE) recently.

During his visit to Abu Dhabi, Misri met UAE Minister of State for International Cooperation and Special Envoy for India, Reem Al Hashimy. The two sides reviewed the entire spectrum of bilateral relations, discussed ways to further strengthen the strategic partnership and exchanged views on regional and global developments, particularly the evolving situation in West Asia.

According to the Ministry of External Affairs, the visit was part of the regular high-level engagements between the two countries and provided an opportunity to assess progress in their expanding partnership.

Economic engagement and investment cooperation featured prominently during Misri's meetings with senior UAE leadership.

He met Jassem Mohamed Bu Ataba Al Zaabi, Chairman of the Abu Dhabi Department of Finance and Managing Director and Group CEO of L'IMAD Holding Company. Discussions focused on opportunities to scale up economic engagement, enhance investment flows and develop long-term commercial partnerships that could benefit both economies.

The meeting assumes significance amid efforts by New Delhi and Abu Dhabi to expand bilateral trade and investment under their Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA), which came into effect in May 2022.

India and the UAE have also set an ambitious target of increasing bilateral trade to $200 billion by 2032. Bilateral trade reached $101.25 billion in the financial year 2025-26, according to figures cited by the Indian Embassy in Abu Dhabi.

Cultural cooperation and people-to-people exchanges were another important component of the visit.

Misri met Mohamed Khalifa Al Mubarak, Chairman of Abu Dhabi's Department of Culture and Tourism, to explore closer institutional linkages and fresh opportunities for cooperation in cultural and creative exchanges.

The discussions included the proposed 'House of India' initiative, envisioned as a platform to showcase India's art, history and heritage, alongside opportunities to strengthen cooperation in tourism.

The initiative reflects the growing importance of cultural diplomacy in broadening the relationship beyond traditional areas of trade, investment and strategic cooperation.

Misri's meeting with Reem Al Hashimy also provided an opportunity for the two sides to exchange perspectives on the prevailing situation in West Asia and other regional and international developments of mutual interest.

The discussions come amid continuing geopolitical uncertainties in the region, underlining the importance of sustained diplomatic communication between India and the UAE.

The two countries have maintained regular high-level exchanges in recent months. These include the visits of External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar to the UAE and UAE Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan's visit to India in October 2026.

India and the UAE have steadily expanded their cooperation across trade, investment, energy, defence, security, technology, connectivity, education, healthcare and culture.

The Comprehensive Strategic Partnership has provided an institutional framework for strengthening cooperation across these sectors, while the presence of a large Indian community in the UAE remains an important pillar of bilateral relations.

Misri's latest visit reaffirmed the importance both countries attach to sustained diplomatic engagement and the implementation of existing commitments.

The discussions also highlighted their shared interest in identifying new areas of cooperation, strengthening economic linkages and expanding cultural and institutional exchanges. The visit concluded with an emphasis on maintaining momentum in the India-UAE partnership and further deepening cooperation across areas of mutual interest.